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7 famous albino animals

By: Shea Gunther on Dec. 6, 2010, 11:31 a.m.
The claw of an albino alligator

Photo: godutchbaby/flickr

1 of 9

Not like the others

Albinism is a congenital disorder that robs the skin, hair and eyes of color. Albinos are extremely pale and as such, suffer from sunburns and skin cancers more frequently than non-albinos. The lack of eye pigmentation can also cause problems. Human albinos often require surgery or wear corrective lenses.

Albino animals face almost insurmountable odds when they're born in the wild. Baby albinos are seen as an oddity within their own species and are more visible to predators. These animals may also be cursed with imperfect vision or other health problems.

Those lucky enough to be born in a zoo can look forward to a relatively comfortable life being gawked at — and written about by environmental websites. Here are seven amazing famous albino animals.