A strange looking magpie!

The Eurasian magpie (Pica pica) is a species from the corvids family (Corvidae). Magpies can be found over almost all of Europe and north-western parts of Africa. For a long time, the Eurasian Magpie and the American Black-billed Magpie were considered the same species (Pica pica). 

However, in 2000, based on their vocalizations and behavior, significant genetic divergence were found between the two, the American Ornithologists' Union officially recognized the Black-billed Magpie as a separate species (Pica hudsonia), which is the one abundantly found in Park City. While they look very similar with their black and white plumage and long tails, subtle differences exist. 

Some sources note differences in the gloss of their feathers and the amount of white on their plumage. Black-billed Magpies can also reach a slightly larger size, mainly due to a longer tail. Their calls are also distinctly different. Further, there are differences in their social behaviors and nesting habits as Black-billed Magpies sometimes nest in loose colonies, unlike the more spread-out nesting of Eurasian Magpies.

So that pretty long explanation serves as introducing the unusual encounter we had a few days ago, when we stumbled upon a white magpie, next to a normal one. My first reaction was to say “It must be a case of albinism!” 

But after checking it, I had to conclude it was a more common case of leucism instead (partial loss of pigmentation, leading to white or patchy feathers but normal-colored eyes, not pink). Albinism in birds is far less frequent (roughly 1 in every 10,000 to 30,000 birds in the wild) while leucism is a bit less rare as it appears in 1 for every 1,000 to 10,000 birds). 

According to what I’ve read, leucistic birds have normal eye color (not pink) and may have mixed white and normal feathers. Will we ever see that unique bird again? I’d love to, but I doubt it!