Rare Photographic Records of Leucism in Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) from India

The shortage of melanin pigment in any avian species is called leucism. Leucism can happen due to genetic mutations and result in the bird’s feathers being completely white or partially losing the pigmentation. This paper reports the first photographic records of Leucistic Ruddy Shelduck from different wetlands of Uttarakhand. A single leucistic individual was observed in the Gangetic wetlands (Misserpur Ganga Ghat) of Haridwar, while another was recorded in the Asan Conservation Reserve, Dehradun, with sightings occurring in different years. These records represent the rare photographic record of Leucistic Ruddy Shelduck from India. These observations provide valuable knowledge of leucism found in waterbird species and are helpful for the great understanding about pigmentation irregularities in waterbirds and their distribution.