White hummingbird

The UCSC Arboretum has had a white hummingbird for the last year. On this day, we were fortunate to find it. it has leucism, a developmental condition resulting in the loss of pigmentation. Unlike albino birds, which completely lack the natural pigment known as melanin, leucistic birds produce melanin but can’t deposit it into their feathers. Albino birds also have red or pink eyes, but this hummingbird’s eyes are black, along with its bill and feet.