A Puma has given birth to an ultra-rare albino cub which is still being sheltered from the gaze of visitors at Nicaragua Zoo in Central America.
Pumas at birth normally have a light brown or reddish fur with black flecks. The genetic mutation that causes the white pigmentation is rare and there are currently now only four albino pumas alive in the world.
The Tomas Belt Zoo in Juigalpa announced the incredible news and the zoo’s vet, Carlos Molina, has said the cub and mum are doing well.
He said: “We are taking all measures to be able to keep him as healthy as possible, together with his mother….He is healthy, his body is in good condition”.
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Zoo keepers have avoided contact with the small albino puma, which is growing up with its mother in a den set up in a fenced enclosure, and hope that within two months the cub will be able to receive veterinary treatment.
Though the cub is healthy and eating well, Mr Molina warned that it is still early days and that albino pumas require plenty of care and are vulnerable to sunlight.
The vet is yet to inspect the cub to see if it is male or female, but for now, they are making sure it gets to bond with the mother.
The mother’s mate, however, is being kept in a separate enclosure, as male pumas have been known to kill their young.
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The tiny, pink-nosed puma at Thomas Belt Zoo in Juigalpa marks the Central American country’s first albino puma to be born in captivity and, according to estimates from zoo veterinarian Carlos Molina, one of only four worldwide.
The cub and its two beige-colored and spotted siblings are being kept in a cage so the mother does not become stressed or confuse human smells with that of the newborns, which could cause her to attack them.
The Tomas Belt Zoo receives up to 60,000 visitors a year, according to its management, however, this could increase as people flock to the facility to see one of the rarest animals in the world.
Pumas are found across the Americas, from the high Andean region of southern Peru to the jungles of Central America.
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