God has given us many animals in a wide variety of distinctive colors
that we can all immediately recognize. If you take it from some researchers,
there are, give or take, 8.7 million different species living on our planet.
You're more than aware of many of them, of course, but here are a few you
may have never seen before.
Above is The the hooded grebe, discovered in Argentina and Chile in 1974.
It was found in healthy population numbers throughout the island, but
recently has declined to only about 800 members left.
Here Are Some Rare Animals. Enjoy! :)
The Brown Panda: Pandas have one of the most famous and distinctive colored
coats in the animal kingdom, and it's one that has enchanted humans for
centuries. However, it isn't always black and white in the panda world.
In one remote region of China, lives a small number of special pandas with
brown fur. It is believed that the color of their coat has come from a
combination of diet and generations of genetic mutations. Brown pandas are
very rarely spotted in the wild, although there are examples in captivity.
Pink dolphins look like they swam straight out of a children's fairy-tale,
but they are real and take on this hue due to albinism. This mutation can
occur across most dolphin species. Some are more pink than others, with
the most brightly-colored examples offering a fantastically unique sight.
The Chimera Cat: Meet Venus, the incredible cat with two faces. The unusual
coloring comes from a condition called chimerism, which occurs when two
distinct genetic cells exist in one single organism. As well as one half of
the face being black, and the other half being ginger, Venus has one blue
eye and one yellow. She is something of a celebrity and even has her own
webpage.
The Albino Gorilla: Albinism is a congenital condition, characterized by a
lack of pigment in the skin, hair and eyes. It exists across numerous
species, including humans. It is very rare in large primates. This albino
gorilla, called Snowflake, lived most of his life in Barcelona Zoo,
fathering 22 offspring before his death in 2003. All the hair on his body
was completely white.
White tigers are one of the most majestic and beautiful animals in the world,
famed for their icy coloring and piercing eyes. They have a pigment variation
in comparison to the more commonly-colored Bengal tiger, but are not albinos.
Just as humans can have blonde hair or brown hair, white tigers are simply a
variation.
The Black Penguin: This penguin looks like he forgot to put his apron on in
the morning, but he is actually the result of a very rare genetic quirk. In
fact, it is so rare that only one black penguin has ever been spotted. Since
this one was photographed by National Geographic, they have appealed for more
sightings of all-black penguins and asked the public to post their own
evidence of this extremely rare variant of an iconic species.
Image Sources: Shutterstock / Rob Janse,
Daily Mail,
New Scientist,
Facebook,
Live Science,
National Geographic.
The Strawberry Leopard: A leopard never changes its spots, as the old
saying goes, but this one looks like he has. There are only two known 'strawberry'
leopards in existence, and they display stunning ginger spots rather than the
black coloring standard in their species. It is believed that they get their
unusual spots from a rare condition which stems from an overproduction of red
pigment, but it makes them look particularly special.
Blue Lobsters are the result of a genetic mutation that infuses them with a
large amount of a particular protein, giving their exoskeletons a bizarre
blue color rather than the familiar red. It is not as rare as some of the
other mutations discussed in this list, with over 2 million blue lobsters
estimated to be in existence. Their color often saves them from the human
cooking pot.
The Golden Zebra: This zebra is one of very few examples in existence in
the world and has light, gold stripes rather than black. Aptly, named the
'golden zebra', she is not an albino, but has a similar pigmentation
mutation caused by a condition called amelanism. She looks like she has
stepped out of a fantasy world and you have to wonder whether she realizes
just how special she really is!
The Pangolin: Due to their status as a delicacy in China and Vietnam, and
the belief that their scales have medicinal powers, all four Asian species
of pangolin are currently listed as endangered or critically endangered.
With their unique look and scales made of keratin - yes, the same keratin
that people pay big bucks for at the hair salon - it's unfortunate that
the pangolin holds the distinction as the world's most trafficked animal.
The Philippine Eagle: Formerly known as the "Monkey-eating eagle," this
Philippines native is one of the strongest birds of prey, able to use its
strong beak to attack monkeys, snakes, and lizards. Despite being named the
National Bird of the Philippines, however, this eagle has faced serious
population pressures in the past 40 years thanks to deforestation and
severe weather, leaving them with a population under 300.
The black-spotted cuscus is a frightening-looking little bugger, with
vertical pupils and arched front claws. Only found in New Guinea, the
cuscus has sadly been driven to the brink of extinction due to hunting
pressures and deforestation. While exact population numbers are not
available, the species is listed as 'rare' and has been critically
endangered since 2010, in some cases extirpated completely from its
territory.
The vaquita is the world's rarest marine mammal, discovered in 1958
and driven to near extinction since then. With large gray fins and a
dark ring around its eyes, this porpoise is recognizable immediately,
though it will quickly swim away when approached.
Image Sources: Izahnvh,
flickr Kamillo Kluth,
shareably.net,
Shutterstock / Vickey Chauhan, Shutterstock / Arie de Gier, Shutterstock / Michal Lukaszewicz.
For those of you who Want More FUN - Visit The Shangy Fun List! Variety is the
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SHANGRALA'S
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