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'White' black bear captured on camera


robke

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Heh, I think the Daily Mail is a little behind the times - those photos were initially published and caused a sensation in the August 2011 issue of National Geographic. Fun fact - this bear was designated British Columbia's official animal by the Lieutenant Governor in 2006.

Thanks for sharing though! They are incredible photos and cannot be circulated enough!

ETA - so that I'm not just a complete buzzkill, here's the link to the National Geographic article that accompanied the photo for anyone interested in further reading!

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/08/kermode-bear/barcott-text

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hi ..robke ..yes i remember watching the white bear on a wildlife channel about 2 yo ...he was only a youngster then ...hes beautiful ...but then they all are ...thanx for the pics :)
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anyone knows why are they very rare? O_O lovely bears btw they're soooooo heart-stealing :wub:

It's a recessive colour gene. Both parents need to carry the gene and pass it on for the offspring to be white. The gene has always been rare, and is virtually non-existent in the rest of North America's bear population, because - like the albino - a white bear is at a severe disadvantage as highly visible to potential both predators and prey.

On the islands, however, they have survived and thrived. The theory is because they depend heavily on fishing, and for fishing the white bear is at an advantage - fish to not appear to flee their approach the same way they do a big dark object over the water. White bears appear to be more successful fishers, having more successful attempts to pull fish out of the rivers than the black bears do.

Give the article above a read, it's pretty damned interesting!

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