BURNET COUNTY, Texas - Albino bluebonnets have been spotted in Burnet County!
Inks Lake State Park shared photos on social media of the rare plant, also known as Lupinus texensis, seen right by the park headquarters.
How do albino bluebonnets happen?
Dig deeper:
According to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, the white bluebonnet is the result of a genetic mutation. There are other color variations that show up occasionally (like pink) but none of these are true breeding plants.
This pollen will reportedly mask the mutation in the next generation so that they will have blue flowers instead of white. Some white ones will still surface every so often since blue flowers can carry the mutated gene.
To produce white flowers, a flower's egg with the mutated gene must be fertilized by pollen that also carries the mutated gene.
Past appearance of albino bluebonnets
The backstory:
This isn't the first time we've seen albino bluebonnets in Central Texas.
In 2022, a FOX 7 Austin viewer shared photos from her dad's cattle pasture in Elroy, a small community in Travis County.
According to Kelsey Perry, the white bluebonnets are in her dad's cattle pasture, on the east side of 130 and Von Quintus Road in Elroy, Texas.
Bluebonnet season in Texas
Big picture view:
The flower's blooming season peaks at the end of March through mid-April.
Click here for a list of places in the Texas Hill Country where you can get a close-up look at fields of blue.
The Source: Information in this report comes from Texas Parks & Wildlife and previous reporting by FOX 7 Austin and FOX Television Stations.