Photo courtesy of DENR Eastern Visayas

MANILA, Philippines — Amid the waters of Lake Malagsum in Burauen, Leyte, protected area rangers encountered a Philippine duck that stood out from the rest — its feathers unusually pale because of a rare pigmentation condition.

The leucistic Philippine duck (Anas luzonica) was documented at Mahagnao Volcano Natural Park (MVNP) during regular patrols, marking the first such record by the park’s Biodiversity Monitoring Team.

Leucism causes reduced pigmentation, giving an animal unusually pale or white coloration. Unlike albinism, however, it does not involve a complete absence of pigmentation.

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