Albinism in nature is rare, but not exceptional. So, according to statistics, babies partially or completely deprived of pigment are born in mammals with a frequency of 1 to 10,000. In cetaceans, such as killer whales, this figure is even higher: 1 to 1,000! Is there an albino gorilla? This question could have been answered in the affirmative 15 years ago. Now, unfortunately, we can only state the fact that in nature such animals, albeit extremely rare, are found.
The only albino gorilla (male) known to science lived for many years at the Barcelona Zoo, in Spain. In total, she lived for about 40 years (by human standards - about 80), of which about 38 were in captivity. This male gorilla was very young at the time of its acquisition by the zoo.
Gorilla Story
A baby with white hair was caught by a local hunter in Africa, on the territory of Spanish Guinea (later - Equatorial Guinea), in 1966. Initially, he received a very simple name: Nfumu Ngui (Nfumu Ngui), which is translated from the local Fang language as "white gorilla".
Albino gorilla was purchasedzoo of the Spanish city of Barcelona for a record amount of 15,000 pesetas. According to some reports, this is the most expensive animal in the world ever purchased for a zoo. His age was determined to be about two years old. The primate was given a new name: Snowball (Spanish: Copito de Nieve).
From the first days of his appearance in the zoo, albino has become a universal favorite, almost a star. The news of the unusual animal quickly spread around the world, and even from other countries came to look at it. The number of journalists who wanted to make a photo or film report about him went through the roof. Postcards and guides to Barcelona with the image of Snowball were issued. It was considered the unofficial symbol of the city's zoo.
Description
The unique animal weighed about 80 kilograms, its height was 163 centimeters. He had pink skin, and the monkey's eyes were not red, but blue. Thus, pigment was partially present in them. At the same time, the animal had visual defects characteristic of albino.
The human "family"
Immediately after Snowball was placed in the zoo, he found a new "family" in the person of Roman Luer, a veterinarian, and his wife. They took care of the animal for many years, spent a lot of time together with him and, according to Maria Luera, sometimes caught themselves thinking that in front of them was an ordinary human child, moderately obedient, moderately playful. Together they ate ordinary human food, played hide and seek. During communication, Snowball showed the same emotions as a small child. He even liked the usual human delicacies, including Coca-Cola.
Attempts to produce albino offspring
Albino gorilla Snowball had a total of twenty-one cubs with three different girlfriends and a large number of grandchildren. But none of the numerous offspring inherited the color features of their father. Moreover: in the 80s of the last century, scientists working at the London Zoo made an attempt to get albino cubs from other females. For this purpose, they collected Snowball's sperm. However, this experiment also ended in failure: all the offspring had the usual color of wool and skin.
According to scientists, Snowball's unusual coloration was the result of closely related crossing, called inbreeding. Conducted subsequently, ten years after the death of the animal, genome sequencing confirmed this hypothesis. With the help of computer programs, calculations were also made, thanks to which it was established that inbreeding was carried out in a pair of uncle (aunt) - niece (nephew).
Disease and death
Gorillas are social animals, and Snowball was no exception. For most of his life he was he althy, active and quite sociable. But in 2001, the zoo management announced the sad news: the favorite of the public and staff is terminally ill, and will probably live no more than a few months. The reason for the development of the disease was called insolation, from which the albino gorilladefinition, there was no protection. Zookeepers initially tried to reduce the harmful effects of sunlight by constructing sheds and shelters, because not only the skin, but also the eyes of such animals are very sensitive. However, this, unfortunately, did not help.
The only male albino gorilla known to science, whose photo is presented in the article, died in 2003. The animal suffered from a rare form of skin cancer, and after much deliberation and discussion of the situation, was euthanized to alleviate his suffering, although, as noted, with the help of modern medicine, his life could be somewhat extended.
Interesting facts
The memory of an albino gorilla is fixed in the starry sky. Asteroid 95962, named Kopito, was named after him.
Several documentaries were made about him throughout Snowball's life, and his story was subsequently played out in a children's feature film, where the albino gorilla is the main character.
This is the first painting in Catalan for children. It was called "Snowflake" and was filmed in 2011. The film uses elements of animation.
