Barry Hitchens had been visiting the Lost Garden of Heligan in St Austell, Cornwall, when he spotted the white-feathered bird and called a team of experts who identified it as a leucistic white sparrow.

Beautiful white canaries

The unique feathered creature was spotted hopping around and being fed by its mother in Newport, South Wales, by hobby photographer Claire Griffiths. The stunning white bird could be mistaken for an albino, but the 46-year-old believes it has a condition called Leucism which only affects the pigment in its skin and feathers giving it its white hue. -READ MORE

Crisp facial markings make the White-throated Sparrow an attractive bird as well as a hopping, flying anatomy lesson. There’s the black eyestripe, the white crown and supercilium, the yellow lores, the white throat bordered by a black whisker, or malar stripe. They’re also a great entrée into the world of birdsong, with their pretty, wavering whistle of Oh-sweet-canada. These forest sparrows breed mostly across Canada, but they’re familiar winter birds across most of eastern and southern…

Pinned 4/23/20-Angel

Learn all about the white-throated sparrow. Our birding experts reveal what these sparrows look like, sound like and what they eat.

White-crowned Sparrow (Immature) - Photographer's Description: Catch--All

White Throated Sparrow Photo by Robert http://honeygirl1946.tumblr.com

A rare white sparrow that has appeared among a flock of about 30 birds in a man's garden will find survival a challenge, an expert says.