Meet Toby, the 6-year-old handsome cat who looks wise beyond his years, and who has feline cutaneous asthenia (FCA), also known as Ehlers Danlos syndrome in humans. Which means that his body doesn't produce collagen properly, resulting in loose skin. This also means that his skin is very fragile, easily bruised and cut.
Story via Love Meow
If you ever were to see one of these snakes in real life, the first instinct would probably be to run away -- and quickly. But if you stopped for a moment longer, you could appreciate just how magnificent their coloring can be. Some of these snakes straight-up just look like dragons. Especially bush vipers that have dragon-like scales and a dragon-shaped head.
Snakes are some of the most misunderstood creatures despite there being lots of snake facts and information available. People seem to have a natural fear and avoidance of snakes, even though some, like the zombie snake, are just big goofy nope-ropes that won't even hurt anyone.
Snakes in general are fairly common all over the world, as it is believed snakes evolved from burrowing lizards, which were already world-wide. Some snakes are extremely rare, and seeing them is a real treat for enthusiasts. Just be sure to keep a safe distance, and make sure to do that funny dance everyone does if you touch the snake's skin and it grosses you out.
A truck driver was driving through the rice fields of Yolo County, Sacramento, when he came across a white mound in the middle of the road. Quickly swerving to avoid hitting it, he continued on for a split second until he saw another truck behind him swerve as well. The truck driver decided to turn around and investigate but was confused as to what the white mound was, upon closer inspection.
As first, he thought it was a lamb or maybe some type of goat, but he heard it mew, like a cat. He called up Kindred Spirits Fawn Rescue center and sent the center's President, Diane Nicholas, a photo of the animal.
Nicholas told LA Times, "He said, 'I don't know what I've got, I said, 'Oh, my gosh, that's an albino fawn!'"
Story via LA Times
According to China Daily, the infrared camera captured the incredibly rare footage of a fully albino panda in the mountains of China's Wolong National Nature Reserve. The images were released to the public this past Saturday and researchers say it is the very first time an entirely while panda has ever been identified.
Li Sheng, of Peking University, told Xinhua news agency, the never-before-seen albino panda seems to be at most 2 years old. "Judging from the photo, the panda is physically strong and taking steady steps, suggesting the gene mutation is not affecting its normal life."
And being albino, the bear might be more sensitive to the sun but in no way should affect its ability to reproduce. If it were to reproduce, however, the offspring would only inherit the albinism if both parents carried the gene, as it is a recessive trait. In a 2014 census, it was revealed that roughly 1800 giant pandas are left in this world, according to the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF), marking their status has "vulnerable".
Officials say that they will attempt to continue track of the bear by installing more motion cameras.
And while experts knew albinism occurred in pandas, this is the very first time it's been captured on camera! Check out the image below!
Grasshoppers are green, ladybugs are red with black dots, dalmations have black spots... don't they? Nature can be so unpredictable and beautiful. Check out these beautiful creatures below:
Originally found via Brightside.me
What an incredible triumph! Tim Wong, an aquatic biologist, took it upon himself to fix a situation that no one seemed to be doing anything about. And he did it all within his backyard! Just goes to show that anyone can make a difference.
Story originally found via Brightside
There are so species out there! Enjoy this list of 25 animals that are not that well known.
During a trip to Kenya, Will Burrard-Lucas (@willbl) captured several photos of a wild melanistic black leopard, also known as a black panther. The images are believed to be the first of their kind taken in Africa in 100 years.
Nature is wonderful!
Few are lucky enough to witness a whale breaching. Even fewer are lucky enough to see three breaching at the same time.
A group of whale watchers experienced a rare occurrence off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada, as three humpback whales leapt out of the water one after the other.
A veterinary student, Summer Ott, learned just how different some adventure cats can be when she adopted Parsley, a previously shy barn kitten with a knack for tree climbing, kayaking and even swimming. Parsley also happens to have a congenital bone deformity that prevents his legs from growing properly. Via: Adventure cats
Seven-year-old Madden Humphreys of Oklahoma was born with two rare conditions — a bilateral cleft lip and complete Heterochromia iridum, or different-colored eyes. And he hasn't had it easy. One cat that looks exactly like him changed his life forever.
