In the natural world, it’s possible that, like humans, animals will develop albinism, a genetic condition in which the pigment of melanin is scarce or completely absent in hair, skin, and eye tissue. The condition opposite to albinism, that is, when there is an abundance of pigment in the tissues, is called melanism in these cases, some tissues appear black.
This is the case of the melanistic tiger seen in India, one of the only six individuals currently living on our planet: an amateur photographer has managed to take some photos which, although improvised, reveal the fascinating character of this very rare animal.
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One out of six exist worldwide #BlackTiger https://t.co/zenPfikWh1 pic.twitter.com/ikm6gZ3Zhn
— Koushik Das?? (@koushikdas47) November 4, 2020
Soumen Bajpayee , a young amateur photographer, managed to photograph a magnificent melanistic tiger during an excursion to the Nandankanan Protected Area in the Orissa region of India.
The tiger, being melanistic, exhibits black fur that almost completely covers the orange fur, typical of tigers in India. The tiger presents an excess of pigmentation in the tissues, which therefore appear black.
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New post (Ultra-rare BLACK tiger is spotted in India: Stunned animal lover photographs predator) has been published on Thai Suggest – https://t.co/hnYS7xqFsM – pic.twitter.com/avt4t4uG08
— Geoff St (@geoffs65) November 5, 2020
This is a very lucky observation it is estimated that only six melanistic tigers live on our planet! Unfortunately, it is a very endangered animal, and all individuals live exclusively in the jungle of the Indian state.
The photographer says he did not immediately notice which animal was in front of his eyes: he was actually smaller than the tigers he had seen on other occasions, both in the wild and in captivity. Melanistic tigers are actually smaller than common tigers.
The sighting only lasted a few seconds, enough to pull out the camera and take those very rare photos that have been around the world. The tiger then hid among the trees from which it had emerged and moved away.
The hope is that soon the male and female melanistic individuals will mate to give birth to young which can increase the number of these exceptional individuals.
source used: dailymail.co.uk