A remarkable 5-month-old black bear cub with cream-colored fur was spotted in British Columbia with its common-colored mother
The rare sight was seen and photographed by Arthur De Jong, who is an environmental planning manager.
The cub was spotted playing with its mother on Whistler-Blackcomb mountain and had scientists scratching their heads.
They believe it is either an albino bear or a spirit bear. Both results refer to a genetic mutation that affects their pigmentation.
But until someone sees whether his eyes are pink like an albino’s or not, we can’t say for sure.
“He’s not white, he’s got a caramel, a light, sort of brown sheen to his fur,” De Jong told CBC.
Check out the video of them playing together:
‘I have heard repeatedly from various bear experts that his (fur) color is the result of recessive genes from both parents. The mother is very much a black bear,’ he added.
According to Michael Allen, who is an expert on whistler bears, this is the first time he has seen a polar bear cub in this area in 23 years.
“I’ve seen chicks that range from black, reddish brown, chocolate brown to blond (after summer bleaching), but I’ve never [I] seen in this population a chick with such a light to almost white coat”
