The first sighting of the world's one and only albino panda since 2019
occurred earlier this year when it lumbered by a motion-sensitive field
camera in the Chinese highlands.
Fortunately, the rare animal appears to be developing normally and happily
at the
Wolong National Nature Reserve
in the Sichuan province, which is a protected area that is home to about 150
giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca).
But this is the only one whose color is known.
The well-known individual carries an uncommon genetic mutation that changes
the species' typical black-and-white fur to a uniformly light cream
tint.
It seems to be an
albino creature. This indicates that it has a mutation that affects how skin, eye, and
hair pigments are produced. However, there is a possibility that this
genetic abnormality will potentially cause sickness or physical
deformities.
There has been no indication of the five or six-year-old panda's health in
the four years since field cameras first spotted him in China.
Despite being the outcast of the panda family, it seems to blend right in.
The all-white panda was seen bonding with a mother panda and her roughly
two-year-old youngster in February footage that was just shown by China's
national television as they snuggled in a tree hollow.
Engineer Wei Rongping from the China Conservation and Research Center for
Giant Pandas told China Daily that towards the end of February, adult wild
pandas in Wolong are in the estrus (mating) season, during which mother
pandas with cubs can be highly violent when an adult panda approaches or
invades.
"This female panda behaved differently than expected and was remarkably
calm. She may be the mother of the all-white panda, for instance.
More than a dozen other contacts with the albino panda and other pandas in
the area were captured by field cameras at the wildlife sanctuary.
There is also a video of the white panda playing with a black-and-white
pal, according to the South China Morning Post.
Although the sex of the albino panda has not yet been established, experts
note that it is already approaching adult size and displaying indicators of
sexual maturity.
Don't miss this ultra-rare chance! An all-white panda was spotted in the Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province. Watch this lovable, one-of-a-kind creature approach a female panda and her cub, who are believed to be its mother and sibling pic.twitter.com/vmJEluCtVM
— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) May 30, 2023
Researchers are aiming to get further footage of the creature and
potentially collect some of its DNA in order to understand more about
it.
Experts are uncertain as to whether or not the panda's genetic peculiarity
will be passed on if it does wind up breeding with another of its
type.
