Wildlife photographer Martín Cárdenas and his tour group came across a spectacular find—a rare animal spotted on their tour of Tepuhueico Park on Chile’s Chiloe Island. The animal was an albino pudu deer. Pudu are the smallest species of deer in the world, and this one is particularly special because it’s all white.
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“Albino animals awaken curiosity and wonder: their unusual whiteness makes them fragile, unique and mysterious, as appearances that highlight the beauty and rarity of nature,” wrote Antonio Nunez Lemos, another photographer who was with Cárdenas that day.
According to BBC, the group decided to call the animal “Blanquita,” which means “little white one” in Spanish.
Animals that appear white when white is not their species’ typical coloration have a genetic condition that affects the pigmentation in their bodies. Albino animals lack pigment completely, and their eyes appear red, like this pudu’s eyes do.
See the rare animal a tour group stumbled upon on a Chilean island here:
Here’s a second photo of the albino pudu:
Have you ever come across an albino animal in the wild?
Header stock image of Chiloe Island, Chile by Posnov/Getty Images