In August 1987, while paddling through a marsh in southern Louisiana, a Cajun fisherman made a startling discovery: 18 week-old white alligator hatchlings.
Several of the white gators and some of their normal colored nest mates were collected from the site and brought to the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans.
We got a look at this one, all grown up now and not bothering to move much away from the heat lamp, and were told that it is not an albino, it is a leucist, a rare genetic abnormality related to albinism but unlike the typical albino, it is healthy in all respects. They call it the Jewel of the Swamp. Don't think it has ever seen a swamp though.
Meanwhile, over on the other side of the zoo, there's a rare white Bengal Tiger. He's no albino either, just a genetic mutation. He didn't move around much either, just yawned and enjoyed the sun.
