A white giraffe sighted in Ishaqbini Hirola Conservancy in Garissa, Kenya. Photo credit: Hilora Conservation
The Ishaqbini Hirola Conservancy in Garissa County, northeastern Kenya is now the center of attention after two rare white giraffes were seen roaming inside the conservancy two months ago.
The two magnificent giraffes, a mother and child, were first spotted in June by villagers who then alerted conservationists from the Hirola Conservation Programme (HCP), which runs the conservancy.
HCP now reports that the baby giraffe has some “conspicuous reticulates but with a small tinge of the white coloration that seemed to continue fading away leaving the baby white as it approaches adulthood”.
But the skin coloring on the mother giraffe is not as visible as the baby.
Rare phenomenon
According to HCP, the white giraffes, which have dark eyes, are suffering from leucism – a genetic condition that inhibits the production of pigmentation in skin cells.
White giraffes spotted in Kenya. Photo credit: Hirola Conservation
Unlike albinism in human beings, this condition allows the affected animals to continue producing dark pigment in their soft tissues, which explains why they have dark eyes.
The organization also reveals that sightings of white giraffes are becoming quite common nowadays, with the first two findings having been made in Kenya and neighboring Tanzania.
The first ever sighting of a white giraffe was reported in January 2016 in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, followed by a second sighting in March the same year in Ishaqbini Conservancy, Kenya.
Sightings of the rare animals have become so common in and around the Kenyan conservancy that locals are now competing to report their discoveries.
“The communities within Ishaqbini have mixed reactions to the sighting of this leucistic giraffe and most elders report that they have never seen this before,” HCP writes on its website.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed reticulated giraffes as “vulnerable” and estimates that there are about 8,500 giraffes suffering from the condition across the world.
Most of these giraffes live in Somalia, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Kenya.
Whether preparing for action-packed scenes or delving into historical accuracy, talent alone doesn’t always deliver…
Auguste, a 64-year-old teacher from Dakar, Senegal, has returned to the classroom after undergoing life-changing…
Over the last few years, startups have faced challenges when trying to exit, due to…
Tanya Young Williams, a Black shop owner, recounted that a man wearing a Donald Trump…
Wedding bells are set to ring as billionaire heir Geoffrey Ogunlesi has proposed to his…
Language evolves with every generation, and Gen Z—those born roughly between 1997 and 2012—has taken…
Chicago Sky player Angel Reese has accused fans of fellow WNBA player Caitlin Clark of…
The cannabis industry has over the years seen little participation of women and the involvement…
Nine Chicago-area mayors have petitioned President Joe Biden to pardon former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.…
Even before he retires from the NFL, Cleveland Browns' Myles Garrett has turned his attention…
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears is poised to make history as the first Black woman to…
Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, who is reportedly nearing billionaire status, has revealed his contentment with…
Gregory Tucker served as his own lawyer and won an appeal of a case that…
Amber Williams, the distraught girlfriend of late rapper Rich Homie Quan, made a frantic 911…
Bennecia Smith and her family were looking forward to settling down in their recently purchased…