Albino animals have a genetic mutation that causes an absence of tyrosinase in their pigment cells, which means they don't produce melanin pigments. While true albinos are thought to be rare in the wild, a number of animals have a similar genetic abnormality called leucism that also manifests in white fur, feathers, scales, or skin. This albino animals photo gallery includes several leucistic animals. How do you tell them apart? It's all in the color of the eye. As you may know, true albinos have red or pink eyes, but leucistic animals may have black, brown, or even blue eyes.
However these animals are classified, they're all super cool to look at. After all, what's a giraffe without its spots? How about a cardinal that isn't the traditional bright red? But while we may often see albino mice or albino rabbits, it's not often that we catch glimpses of many other albino animals. This is, in part, because bright white animals are very vulnerable to predators. A zebra's black stripes aren't just for show - they're protective camouflage that conceal it from lions, leopards, hyenas, etc. The life expectancy of an albino baby animal born in the wild is very short.
Local fishermen call this rare pink dolphin "Pinky" -- she has been spotted several times in Calcasieu Lake, Louisiana, most recently in 2015. Albino dolphins are very rare and unfortunately, their pretty pink color makes them extremely vulnerable to predators.
This rare orangutan was rescued from an Indonesian village in May 2017. The five-year-old animal was kept in a cage in Borneo, but when the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation discovered his existence, they fought to free him.
They named the orangutan "Alba" which means "white" in Latin.
This baby albino Green turtle was found newly hatched in Australia. Albino births among Green turtles are so rare, there is probably only a one in many hundreds of thousands chance of spotting one. Sadly, their lack of color makes them easy prey.
There are no known albino giraffes in the world, but several leucistic giraffes - like Omo, pictured above in Tarangire National Park in Tanzania - have been spotted.
In September 2017, a pair of pale giraffes was spotted in Kenya. The mother and calf hardly have any spots at all.
