A few months ago, Linda Griesbach saw an extraordinary feathery sight.

The South Whidbey resident spied an American robin with a snowy white back, pale all over except for its red breast. Though she hasn’t seen it in over a month, she is still holding out hope that it might return.

“I’d love to see it again,” she said.

Birders on Whidbey post sightings of unusual avians on the Whidbey Audubon Society’s website, which is where Griesbach saw a report of a “leucistic or albino robin” near the Lone Lake boat launch March 19-21. A neighbor had also reported seeing it.

Griesbach had her own sighting March 30 of the strange bird, which was spotted with a fully pigmented robin, flitting about orchard trees.

“The two of them were kind of bopping around together,” Griesbach said.

Robins are in the area year-round, though some are migratory. This time of year, they are nesting.

Griesbach saw the leucistic robin for the last time with its friend on April 20. She wonders if it’s still out there somewhere.

“Quite frankly, this poor bird has a target on its back because it’s pretty noticeable,” she said.

It might be making a living, or it could easily have become prey for a raptor or coyote.

“It definitely does not blend in with its surroundings the way a normal robin would,” Griesbach said.

Leucism can appear in many other animals, including fish, snakes and crocodiles. Griesbach has seen it in juncos, a common bird on Whidbey.

Besides the robin with leucism, there has recently been a smattering of American white pelican sightings on the Whidbey Audubon Society’s website. Visit whidbeyaudubonsociety.org/sightings-and-photo-gallery to submit or view sightings.