{"id":78340,"date":"2021-01-26T06:25:47","date_gmt":"2021-01-26T13:25:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=78340"},"modified":"2024-02-13T19:29:36","modified_gmt":"2024-02-14T02:29:36","slug":"leucistic-canada-goose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/01\/26\/leucistic-canada-goose\/","title":{"rendered":"Leucistic Canada Goose"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"LeucisticLeucistic Canada Goose with regular geese \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I didn’t see any American Robins feeding on crabapples yesterday but I did find a leucistic Canada Goose at my local pond.<\/p>\n

The leucistic Canada Goose was bathing when I first noticed it along the shoreline. My photos were taken from the opposite side of the pond for documentary purposes.<\/p>\n

I thought the white markings on the left side of the head of the goose were interesting. I really wish this odd looking goose had been closer to me.<\/p>\n

\"CanadaCanada Goose with leucism on its head \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Leucism can affect part of a bird or the whole bird. In this case the rest of the Canada Goose appears normal. Only the goose’s head shows the plumage variation so I would call this Canada Goose partially leucistic although some people might call it piebald or partially albino.<\/p>\n

What is Leucism?<\/h2>\n

From Wikipedia<\/span><\/a>:<\/p>\n

‘Leucism’ is often used to describe the phenotype that results from defects in pigment cell differentiation and\/or migration from the neural crest to skin, hair, or feathers during development. This results in either the entire surface (if all pigment cells fail to develop) or patches of body surface (if only a subset are defective) having a lack of cells that can make pigment.<\/em><\/p>\n

David Sibley, the author of “The Sibley Guide To Birds”<\/em>, shares his thoughts on abnormal coloration in birds here<\/span><\/a>. I have that post bookmarked and refer to it whenever I find a bird with abnormal coloration or leucism.<\/p>\n

\"LeucisticLeucistic Canada Goose on the shoreline \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

The right side of the Canada Goose’s head looked normal except for a spot of white above the cheek patch that extends from the left side of its head.<\/p>\n

Over the years I have photographed other birds with abnormal white plumage including a Black-billed Magpie<\/span><\/a>, Red-tailed Hawk<\/span><\/a>, Bald Eagle<\/span><\/a>, an American Robin with one white tail feather<\/span><\/a>, and white Eared Grebes<\/span><\/a> on the Great Salt Lake.<\/p>\n

Not only am I always looking for birds I am also looking for the odd duck, or in this case, the odd goose.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

To view more of my Canada Geese photos plus information about this species click here<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I didn’t see any American Robins feeding on crabapples yesterday but I did find a leucistic Canada Goose at my local pond.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":121148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,28,13594,709,26],"tags":[4004,32,4774,4343,713,4775,6306,3456,3455,10931,10930,5515,8277,1984,3996,2063,10524,10525,373],"class_list":["post-78340","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-canada-geese","category-leucistic","category-salt-lake-county-utah","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-branta-canadensis","tag-canada-geese","tag-canada-goose","tag-geese","tag-goose","tag-head","tag-leucism","tag-leucistic","tag-odd-plumage","tag-partial-leucism","tag-partially-leucistic","tag-plumage-variation","tag-pond","tag-water","tag-waterfowl","tag-white-head","tag-white-headed","tag-winter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/canada-goose-leucistic-head-mia-mcpherson-0684.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-kny","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":62573,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/01\/10\/canada-goose-with-white-plumage-on-its-head\/","url_meta":{"origin":78340,"position":0},"title":"Canada Goose With White Plumage On Its Head","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 10, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Canada Goose was unusual because it had spotted, white plumage on its head and I was able to take photos of both left and right profile views of its head.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Canada Goose with white plumage on its head - 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My jaw dropped when I found a foraging leucistic American Coot.","rel":"","context":"In "American Coots"","block_context":{"text":"American Coots","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/gruiformes\/american-coots\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Leucistic American Coot in low light, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mpcherson-7236.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mpcherson-7236.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mpcherson-7236.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mpcherson-7236.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":120144,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/01\/26\/im-still-looking-for-this-leucistic-american-coot\/","url_meta":{"origin":78340,"position":4},"title":"I’m Still Looking For This Leucistic American Coot","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 26, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I remember feeling very thrilled when I found this leucistic American Coot on January 2, 2023. I'd been hoping to find a leucistic coot for quite a long time.","rel":"","context":"In "American Coots"","block_context":{"text":"American Coots","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/gruiformes\/american-coots\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Unusual leucistic American Coot, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mcpherson-2911.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mcpherson-2911.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mcpherson-2911.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/american-coot-leucistic-mia-mcpherson-2911.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":47763,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/07\/22\/water-dance-of-leucistic-eared-grebes-on-the-great-salt-lake\/","url_meta":{"origin":78340,"position":5},"title":"Water Dance of Leucistic Eared Grebes on the Great Salt Lake","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 22, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"I will probably never see and photograph so many leucistic Eared Grebes again in my life time as I did yesterday on the Great Salt Lake.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Nine Leucistic Eared Grebes on the Great Salt Lake, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/eared-grebes-leucistic-gsl-mia-mcpherson-.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/eared-grebes-leucistic-gsl-mia-mcpherson-.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/eared-grebes-leucistic-gsl-mia-mcpherson-.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/eared-grebes-leucistic-gsl-mia-mcpherson-.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78340","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78340"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78340\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/121148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}