Albinism is a hereditary genetic condition, with autosomal recessive transmission, characterized by partial or total loss of pigmentation (of the color of the skin, hair and eyes), due to the absence or decrease in the synthesis and distribution of albinism . melanin.
Albinism occurs at different levels in the animal kingdom, this means that, in external appearance, not all affected specimens look extremely pale or white. These are the types of albinism in animals:
-Ocular albinism : the lack of pigmentation only occurs in the eyes.
-Complete albinism(oculocutaneous type 1): affects the skin, fur and eyes, which show different pale shades, such as white, gray or pink.
-Oculocutaneous albinism type 2 : the individual has normal pigmentation in some area of ​​the body.
-Oculocutaneous albinism type 3 and 4 : the role of tyrosine is unstable, so the animals have some normal characteristics, in addition to white spots or areas lacking melanin.
Today, in Mascotissimas, we show you a list of the most curious albino animals.
List of albino animals
– Piton albino , in the Matecana Zoo in Pereira, Colombia, there are several specimens belonging to the family Pythonidae.
– albino gorilla,known as Copito de Nieve, who lived in the zoo of Barcelona, ​​Spain, until 2003.
-Albino peacocks , from the zoos of Zacango, Mexico; Connecticut, USA; Matecana Pereira, Colombia; Lahore, Pakistan and Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.
– South African albino penguin , called Snowdrop, lived in the Bristol Zoo, in the United Kingdom until he died in August 2004.
– Albino spider monkey , in the zoo of Barranquilla, Colombia, there is a specimen belonging to the species Ateles ater, popularly known by the name Marimonda.
– African porcupine, in the zoo of Castellar de la Frontera, in Cadiz, Spain; There are two albino specimens of the Hystrix cristata family (the only ones in Spain). Another specimen is known from the zoological safari in Nantes, France.
– Albino crocodile , named Claude. Lives in California, USA; in a swamp that is inside the Academy of Sciences. In Australia, a female albino crocodile has been sighted, who has been named Pearl.
– Albino lion , called Ludwing and lives in a zoo in Kiev, Ukraine. The birth of albino tigers has also been recorded.
– Albino giraffe , two of them live in Kenya, Africa. A mother and her calf who were unfortunately killed by poachers.
–Albino koala , named Onya, currently lives in Australia. Births of albino kangaroos have also been recorded in this region.
