![]() ![]() In fact, Caro's research indicates that zebra stripes could have evolved to aid in repelling disease-carrying flies. This does not necessarily mean that stripes are effective at deterring predators, he adds. "Some predators choose members of herds that stand out because it may signal that they are not so good at fleeing," he explained to us via email. Unusual colouration is likely to put the animals at greater risk of falling victim to predators, according to University of California biologist Dr Tim Caro. In 2014, a black zebra was photographed in Botswana's Okavango Delta, while a ' blonde' individual showed up in the Serengeti earlier this year. Zebras with unusual colour patterns are rare, but not unheard of. Under their striped coats, zebras have uniformly black skin as a result of melanocytes being evenly distributed across their bodies. According to Barsh, pseudomelanistic zebras like Tira have all of their melanocytes in place, but the melanin produced does not result in stripes, for unexplained reasons. In humans, melanin acts as a natural sunscreen, darkening the skin to help protect it from harmful UV rays."There are a variety of mutations that can disturb the process of melanin synthesis, and in all of those disorders, the melanocytes are believed to be normally distributed, but the melanin they make is abnormal,” Greg Barsh, a geneticist at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, explained to National Geographic. Skin and hair colour in mammals comes from a pigment protein called melanin which is produced by specialised cells called melanocytes. While Tira may look like he's been crossed with an okapi, he actually owes his unique colouration to a rare genetic condition called pseudomelanism. This particular Zebra suffers from partial albinism which in layman terms means significantly less melanin.Word of the spotty zebra – given the name "Tira" by the guide who first found him – quickly got around and photographers and tourists in the area rushed to catch a glimpse of the unusual animal. “At first glance he looked like a different species altogether," photographer Frank Liu told National Geographic. In Tanzania's Serengeti National Park a blonde Zebra was photographed earlier this year. While most think this is the only ‘odd zebra out’ its not true. The concern is that its odd pattern makes its life difficult in the savannah’s wilderness as predators can easily spot animals with color variations among the pack. Pseudomelanism, also called abundism, is another variant of pigmentation, characterized by dark spots or enlarged stripes, which cover a large part of the body of the animal, making it appear melanistic. Zebras are dark-skinned and their stripes arise out of cells called melanocytes that transfer melanin to some of their hairs therefore the hairs that have melanin appear black and the ones without melanin appear white. This baby Zebra suffers from a genetic condition known as ‘pseudomelanism’ which is responsible for the abnormalities in the stripe pattern amongst zebras. The one and only polka-dotted Zebra foal, that has taken the internet by storm, is called ‘Tira’ named after a local tour guide and photographer, Antony Tira who spotted him first.
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