In reply to Chris Craggs:
Thank you. So you are suggesting that all the melanocytes are missing?
Or are you talking of albinism, where there are melanocytes, but they can be amelanotic?
Whatever the case, that refers to the result or phenotype, but not the aetiology or genetics. I wonder if this happens as a mutation, which dies out because the birds are predated more readily, or are more outcast by their fellow birds.
Is the phenotype transient like the tabby appearance in black kittens which gradually fades, or does it stay?
I may sound as if I'm being critical, but I'm not; I'm curious to know what the background to the appearance is.