by Rᴀʀᴇ blonde seal cub caught on camera in South Georgia Islands
Being the odd one out has always been ꜰᴀsᴄɪɴᴀᴛɪɴɢ and wildlife didn’t hesitate to frequently offer such Rᴀʀᴇ sights. Recently an extremely Rᴀʀᴇ blonde seal cub has been sᴛᴏʟᴇɴ the spotlight, proving once again that Mother Nature never cease to amaze! A wildlife photographer Roie Galitz had spotted a blonde baby seal. South Georgia Islands was where the encounter took place. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime encounter for Roie. Moreover, blonde seals make up less than 1 percent of the seal population. Thus, this makes them extremely rare. Lexnau reports this fact.
“I spent almost two hours next to this sweet fur seal cub,” the photographer said. “t posed for my camera in such an adorable way that it was difficult to leave him and carry on for other photography opportunities. Blonde seals are extremely Rᴀʀᴇ — and this was the only blonde cub in a beach full of ordinary fur seals.” Roie claims the seal was very adorable. It had struck the perfect pose for the photograph. The situation was truly a unique one. As a result, distraction was out of the question for him. Distraction would result in Roie losing a chance that does not occur every day! Even quite ꜰᴀsᴄɪɴᴀᴛɪɴɢ for the curios eyes, these ᴀʟʙɪɴᴏ animals have face a lot of obstacles in the wild. A different fur color frequently means the rejection of the herd as well as other major disadvantages like ᴠᴜʟɴᴇʀᴀʙɪʟɪᴛʏ in front of the ᴘʀᴇᴅᴀᴛᴏʀs due to the inability to camouflage or even inability to ʜᴜɴᴛ due to the ᴘᴏᴏʀ ᴇʏᴇsɪɢʜᴛ.
Most animals are born with ɢᴇɴᴇᴛɪᴄ ᴍᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴs. Therefore, these ᴍᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴs result is a different skin color. This makes them stand out from the rest of the crowd. The ᴍᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴs can be either ᴀʟʙɪɴᴏ or ᴍᴇʟᴀɴɪɴ-ʙᴀsᴇᴅ. Paws Planet has stated this. However, an animal is not always ʜᴀɴᴅɪᴄᴀᴘᴘᴇᴅ just because it has a sᴋɪɴ ᴍᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ. Most animals with sᴋɪɴ ᴍᴜᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴs can live their lives normally. In addition, most animals tend to become ᴏᴜᴛᴄᴀsᴛs in their group. This is because of the different skin color. However, this seal is not an outcast. He is considered a member of his colony. Thus, his fellow group members treat him well.
Seals mostly tend to live in cold environments. The arctic is one great example where they can be found. They have a thick layer of fat to give them protection ᴀɢᴀɪɴsᴛ the ʜᴀʀsʜ cold. Blubber is the name of this thick layer of fat. They also have a dense coat of fur. This further insulates them ᴀɢᴀɪɴsᴛ the cold. Global warming is of great ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀ to the seals. The melting of the polar ice caps ᴅᴇsᴛʀᴏʏ their homes. Furthermore, they are unable to adapt to the temperature increase. This causes their numbers to decline. Global warming also causes a food shortage for the seals. This further puts them at ʀɪsᴋ. Even though, in this particular situation, the other seals didn’t seemed bothered by this little one’s sɪɴɢᴜʟᴀʀɪᴛʏ. It has even been spotted rubbing noses with others of its kind. It is estimated that one seal in 1000 could actually have blonde fur. Unlikely ᴀʟʙɪɴɪsᴍ, this condition occurs due to a ʀᴇᴅᴜᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ɪɴ ᴘɪɢᴍᴇɴᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ.
