Below, the emotions of a devastated young giant panda, all alone in the snow. Later given the name Qizai, meaning ‘seventh son’, this panda was discovered in the wild as a cub after found abandoned by his mother at just two years of age. Soon after, he was taken in under the care of rescuers.
Today, at nine-years-old, Qizai is the only known brown panda held in captivity in the entire world. Found in China’s Shaanxi Province, this male panda’s uniquely colored coat of white and brown has left experts in awe, leading many researchers on an ardent mission to find the reasons behind Qizai’s unique features.
Night of the Living…Raccoons?
For one woman with a particularly bad case of the raccoons (see the below photo for reference), enough was enough. To catch the creature that was repeatedly mooching off her dog’s kibble, she devised an ingenious plan: set up a camera atop a motion detector, and attempt to catch the thieving culprit in the act. After checking her camera’s pictures the next morning, the woman’s suspicions were correct: the thief was in fact a raccoon. But it was not just one thief, it was a few dozen, hungry raccoons.
Thankfully, the seemingly terrifying looking, brain-hungry, undead looking zombie raccoons captured in the photo were, in reality, normal raccoons, whose eyes were simply eerily lit up by the flash of the camera. And while appearing to walk in a zombie-like fashion, this stance is actually common among these nocturnal animals, who often stand upright when feeling startled or treated. Thus, it makes sense that the multiple, unexpected flashes set off by the camera throughout the night would freak these little guys out.
Black Panthers and Jaguars Unite…Wakanda Forever!
While the below animal is indeed a black panther, it is not of African. In the animal world, experts use the term “black panther” to describe “melanistic big cats,” wherever they may live in the world. On the continents of Africa and Asia, “black panthers” are known as leopards characterized by an abundance of the melanin pigment.
In the above photo, this American black panther is known as a Jaguar. Whether black panthers are technically black leopards or black jaguars, all-in-all, this species is relatively common. In total, approximately 6% of all Jaguars are known to be melanistic.
A Trotting Baby Musk Ox
In case you haven’t witnessed it before, below is a photo of a baby musk ox trotting happily along its surrounding rocky terrain. Residing primarily in Greenland and the Canadian Arctic, over time, these furry creatures have adapted amazingly to their frigid surroundings. In addition to their long shaggy hair, which protects them from the extreme cold, the musk oxen also have outer hairs, called guard hairs, which cover the animals’ shorter undercoat, one which provides them with even more insulation during the Arctic’s harsh winters.
Thankfully, as the winter nears its end, spring approaches, and temperatures begin to rise, this thick fur undercoat is shed until the next winter. And while the above baby musk ox may be cute, it is extremely vulnerable to its predators, most commonly the arctic wolf.
A Rare, Seemingly Albino Moose Crosses the Road - Gunnarskog, Varmland, Swede
Meet Ferdinand, the albino moose: a celebrity in the southwest-central region of Varmland, Sweden. And it is no secret why. With his head-to-toe white coloring, making him appear as an alabaster sculpture, this rare creature is a majestic sight for all. According to National Geographic, the reason for the moose’s abnormally rare white color is the result of a genetic mutation.
However, unlike this white moose, in most cases of albinism, those impacted have characteristically light or pinkish colored eyes. However, like Ferdinand, for moose with bright, white fur coats, more common than not this feature is actually obtained from a recessive gene which causes this animal to grow white with specs of brown, a condition otherwise known as piebald.