What does it mean when an animal has leucism?

Animals that are white in color are often mistaken for having albinism when they actually have leucism. Leucism results in a reduction in all types of pigments, not just melanin, so an animal with leucism may either have pale or muted colors or irregular patches of white.

Like albinism, leucism is inherited, though the severity and positioning of the muted colors can vary between parents and offspring or even skip generations in the case of recessive genes.