Published: 7:00AM BST17 Aug 2009
The bird is one of few albino birds ever to be spotted in Britain, although it is not clear if it is a 'pure' example of a creature with no pigment at all, as its eyes do not appear to be pink.
A complete albino often has weak eyesight and brittle wing and tail feathers, which may reduce its ability to fly and in flocks. They are also often harassed by their own species.
However, this swallow appeared to be more than a match for its companions and mixed freely with them without alarm.
Steve Copsey, 45, who saw it first, said: "I've been bird watching for 20 years but I've never seen anything like it.
"We were watching a flock of swallows and they all landed on a wire and among the other birds, there he was. It was incredible."
He added: "The other birds were treating him normally but he was definitely something very different he looked a bit like an angel and stuck out like a sore thumb.
"We came back on various days to see if he would return but he never returned."
Albinism is rare among birds, affecting 1 in 18,000.
The condition, which causes feathers and parts of the bird's body to appear completely white, is caused by the absence of the pigment melanin.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/6038277/White-albino-swallow-sets-twitchers-a-flutter.html
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