Partial leucism in the Variable Seedeater (Sporophila corvina) in Costa Rica.

Leucism is the most common plumage aberration recorded in wild birds around the world, but very few records exist for Neotropical wild bird species with black plumage. In this note I describe the first observation of partial leucism in the Variable Seedeater (Sporophila corvina corvina). The observation was made in Suerre, Pococí, Costa Rica, on 26 July 2021. These observations have important conservation implications for wild birds because they may be associated with environmental, populational and nutritional issues. This record adds to other studies of plumage aberration in wild birds of the Neotropics, and contributes to knowledge on the natural history and conservation of this species.