It’s that time of the year…Badlands’ migratory birds, including the burrowing owl, are beginning to fly the nest (or burrow) for the season.
Burrowing owls are usually seen in prairie dog towns, where they live in old prairie dog burrows, and are also usually…not white? Wait a second, what’s going on here? This pale little fellow is part of a very rare family of Leucistic Burrowing Owls spotted by Park Rangers earlier this month.
Leucism, similarly to albinism, can result in a lack of normal pigmentation. Both are genetic anomalies, but whereas albinism is caused by a melanin deficiency, leucism is caused by a genetic condition that reduces all types of pigments, not only melanin.
One of the easiest ways to tell a difference between animals with albinism vs leucism is their eyes. Albino animals will have red or pink eyes because the lack of pigment allows blood vessels to be visible through their sclera (the whites of their eyes). Leucistic animals on the other hand will have standard eye colors.
Some studies show that only about 1 in 30,000 birds are born with either leucism or albinism, making our snow-white burrowing owls pretty special!
Leucistic animals many times have a harder life than normal. I hope this owl is doing well.
Wishing you luck, tiny owl!
The white makes it easier to find, Stuart.