Wildebeest seem to be appearing in many colors lately.  Two weeks ago we posted a guest's sighting of a rare 'white wildebeest' spotted in Kenya (more about that here).  This week Geoff Calmeyer from Roar Africa shared his sandy-colored Wildebeest spotted in the Luangwa Valley, Zambia.  Impossible?  Not at all.

Wildebeest (from Afrikaans "wild cattle") or Gnu (from the Khoikhoi "Gnou"), come in two species: Black and Blue.  They differ in a number of ways but primarily in horn curvature and, not surprisingly, color.   Colors can vary quite significantly.  Blue Wildebeest tend to be a dark grey color with stripes, but may have a shiny blue color. There are five Blue Wildebeest sub species.  The Black Wildebeest has brown colored fur with a mane that ranges in color from cream to black, and a tail that is cream colored at the end.  There are no sub species.

The white Wildebeest our guest spotted was in fact a genetic anomaly.  It was actually a Blue Wildebeest.  Geoff's sandy-colored Wildebeest is also a Blue Wildebeest.  It's one of five subspecies of the Blue - the Cookson's Wildebeest.  This sub-species is restricted to the Luangwa Valley in Zambia and as you can see it's coloring is very light.

Making things a little more complicated the Black and Blue Wildebeest (which diverged into these northern and southern species about 1 million years ago) have now, due to proximity in South Africa, interbred and with fertile offspring.

It's enough to confuse Gnu.

Top pic: White Wildebeest spotted in Masai Mara, Kenya


Bottom Pic: Cooksons Wildebeest spotted in Luangwa, Zambia

One morning in early August, two honeymooners on safari were surprised to spot a young, white wildebeest in the Masai Mara, Kenya.  No less surprised was their guide who had not seen one before.

"The herd was part of the migration passing near Naibor Camp. We were just about to drive off when I saw something white among them." said Melissa. "We could hardly believe our luck."

Melissa was honing her spotting skills on her second safari with us.  Thanks for sharing your photos with Roar Afrcia!

So was this a white wildebeest or an albino wildebeest and what's the difference?
There are three braod categories of white animals:

1. White: genetically white due to a recessive gene.  Usually a true white; dark stripes, rings or masks usually appear the same color (or diluted) as found in the normal phenotype. The eyes are the normal color.
2. Albino: The coat color will be a creamy white to pale yellow – the color isn't a true white. Dark markings will be expressed as gray or pale tan. Also genetic, pure albinism is due to a lack of melanin and identified by striking red eyes.
3. Leucistic: Leucism is a genetic mutation resulting in defective pigment producing cells.  Partially leucistic breeds are common in dogs, cats and horses.  

Melissa's wildebeest is definitely not pure white but it's eyes are not red either.  Now let the zoologists debate....

You can see White Lions in South Africa.  Read more here...