Sacred Robin

 

The mythic white robin signals that winter is finally here. Just kidding. It simply lacks pigment, a genetic quirk found in lots of animals. But I like to think of it as the sacred robin.

Leucism occurs in many birds and mammals, but it is rare. This is one of the few leucistic birds I've seen.

When leucism occurs in hippos, you get a pink hippo. I saw this rare hippo in Uganda's Murchison Falls National Park.

Legends are now and forever. A leucistic white-tailed deer lies in repose at the Cape May County Zoo. I believe this is a relative of a herd that lived in the Cape May County Park North or Cameron Estate, which had a population of leucistic deer.

Snowy accents make a leucistic peacock even more resplendent at the Cape May County Zoo. Wowza.

White tigers like this one at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden are perhaps the best known examples of leucism. Also, Who-Dey! Because of course.