Albino and Leucistic animals

[albinoandleucistic]

https://youtu.be/GuHVoPUbspE

[plaguedoctormemes]

Footage of a Black fallow deer recently seen in Baryczy Valley, Poland.

Found on r/interestingasfuck

[mosskrow]

fun fact his exact opposite made an appearance a day later! this is a tweet from the Polish National Forest account:

Yesterday we posted about the Black Prince from the Baryczy Valley, and today in the Forest Inspectorate of Piotrków out of the fog emerged his exact opossite - a snow white leucistic specimen :D #leucism is a partial or complete lack of dark pigmentation. the balance in nature must be kept ;)

source

[todaysbird]

this surprisingly white yellow-throated toucan was spotted in costa rica within its native habitat. the bird’s odd appearance is due to leucism, a genetic condition that leads to an absence of pigmentation. birds with plumage in abnormal colors are prone to increased predation and weak feathers due to lack of melanin.

[rachelladytietjens]

A leucistic tui has been photographed in Wellington, New Zealand.

Tui photo credit Peter Reyes

White Tui photo credit Sean Gillespie

[speakingofnature]

Many different sparrow species are migrating through Iowa at this time, however I was surprised and puzzled to find this one with a white head. After a closer look I realized it was a leucistic Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla). Leucism is characterized by a partial loss of the pigment melanin resulting in part of the animal appearing white. I have observed other birds with this condition, however this was my first Field Sparrow.

[violetsandshrikes]

Save the Anpittas Habitat!

“The Paz Bird Refuge (Refugio Paz de las Aves) located in Nanegalito, Ecuador is the first place in the world where humans began communicating with the Antpitta Bird Species in their very own habitat. Thousands of people have witnessed Angel and Rodrigo Paz calling the shy Antpittas by name as Maria and Willie then appear from the forest for a meal of worms and then return to their home in the forest. Our Refuge is also one of only a few places where you can observe the magnificent Andean Cock of the Rock as they dance, prance and fight for a chance with the female. The land where we observe the Andean Cock of the Rock and Giant Antpittas is leased and may be deforested to allow for cattle farming and logging. We have the opportunity to purchase the property and protect the habitat of theses rare and magnificent birds, however with our limited economic resources we are unable to raise the money needed to buy the property and prevent further deforestation. The cost of the land is $50,000 but with a $10,000 down payment we can secure a loan for the remainder.”

$4000 out of $10000 as of the 25th of November 2020!

[shel02004]

The White Tiger Fraud

If nature is designed to prevent the survival of genetic mutations that are a danger to a specie’s survival – why do white tigers exist?

Natural selection would not allow the white tiger to survive in the wild. If a white tiger were to be born in the wild, the mother would either kill or abandon the cub as she knows it will not survive with its colouration and does not want to draw attention to her other cubs. So if they do not exist in the wild, why should we breed them in captivity?

White tigers are very popular among zoos, performing shows and exhibitions because they bring profit. The belief that the white tiger is a far rarer and more endangered species than the orange Bengal tiger has made it a significantly more popular cat to be seen.

In actual fact, the white tiger is simply an orange Bengal tiger with a severe genetic mutation. It is a condition called leucism whereby pigmentation is reduced due to a double recessive gene. Both parents must carry this particular gene for a white tiger to be born and is therefore a result of excessive inbreeding. This genetic anomaly is in fact so rare in nature that only 1 in 10,000 tigers are born white in the wild.

The same gene that produces the white colouration, also causes optic nerves to be wired to the wrong side of the brain, therefore making all white tigers to be cross eyed, whether it is noticeable or not. The inbreeding also leaves most white tigers with clubbed feet, cleft palates, spinal deformities, immune deficiencies and mental impairments which cause them to live miserable, short lives, if any life at all.

The truth is that every single white tiger that you see in captivity in the US has been inbred from one single tiger in the 1950s. Back in the early 1950s, a white tiger cub was captured, raised and inbred by a man in India. He bred father to daughter, mother to son, to get more white tiger cubs since this is a recessive gene that both parents must carry. This inbreeding continued for generations and now every single white tiger that you see in captivity can be traced back to that one single white tiger in the 1950s with them all been inbred ever since.

Because white tigers suffer from an enormity of problems, the ones that show visible signs of these conditions are known as the ‘throw away tigers’, they are the ones that you never see because they don’t make it on TV or in performing shows. Usually the orange ones that are born in this process are killed at birth as they are not as big money makers. In order to be a ‘perfect white tiger’, they must show no signs of deformity; they must possess a pure white coat with perfect black stripes and striking blue eyes. This is almost impossible to produce considering the amount of inbreeding involved. With severe inbreeding, 1 in 4 tigers will turn out white, 80% of which will be still-born with the remaining 20% deformed. According to some trainers, only 1 in every 30 of these white tigers will perform continuously, therefore countless tigers are being destroyed just for that one ‘perfect’ show tiger.

The myth of the rare white tiger was created to deceive the public into believing that they are an endangered species being bred for conservation purposes. This is all a fraud, if a white tiger were to be released into the wild, it would most likely starve to death. Instead they are being bred for entertainment purposes because they bring in more profit than orange ones. White tigers also rely more on their owners due to their impairments, causing them to be more popular among entertainers.

Do you support any organisations that breed white tigers? If so, you are simply supporting the exploitation of such animals, to be inbred, deformed and destroyed, not to mention the unnatural training and handling that the ‘perfect’ animals are put through, (but I will get to that in a future blog). They are the only ones that suffer.

[kiwano]

I’m fascinated by the leucistic coloring of this fox squirrel. (White areas have reduced pigmentation.) S/he has been visiting the garden for a few weeks.

[quinnred]

 So my dad snapped a nice photo of this unique fella, a Leucistic American Robin.

[fairy-wren]

leucistic red-headed parrotfinch

(photo by brandon portelli,flickr)

[thingswithantlers]

White Elk by Click 2 Click

[evalandis]

[wildsideoflifeencounters]

Leucistic red kangaroos at Albany wildlife park, WA

[thedarkperidot]

Corvid myths that need to be corrected-

The above birds are cute right? But no, they are not crows. They are baby buff banded rails, and the circulation that they are otherwise is becoming annoying. Want to see a real baby crow?

Not as cute, huh. Notice how fluffy and soft the rails are, and how not the crows are? That’s because there are two ways birth happens. The first being altricial, which means you’re born helpless and naked, or precocial, which means you’re born fully feathered or furred and are ready from day one. Big difference. Now then, onto the final corvid correction. Presumably you have seen this image?

Although Leucistic ravens thrive less than black ravens, they are NOT bullied or eaten by their mothers for it. Leucism is a condition in which there is partial loss of pigmentation in animals. Leucistic birds lack melanin pigment in their plumage due to melanin cell production being absent. Albinism is an absence of tyrosinase in pigment cells, and also inhibits red/pink eyes.

[birdsandbirds]

An eerie white hen Northern Pintail.

She wasn’t albino because the eye wasn’t red, but she was lacking most of her normal pigmentation.

[funnywildlife]

Christmas Come Early!

A rare white reindeer spotted in northern Sweden by Ivo Poijo

[fairy-wren]

leucistic common raven

(photos by ralph hocken)