Is there a such thing as a white cheetah?

Question

Just wondering. I know there's a such thing as a white tiger, but what about a cheetah?

Answer 1

Albinism, a complete lack of pigment, can occur in any species, including cheetahs, so a white cheetah is certainly possible. White tigers are not albinos - an albino tiger has no stripes and pink eyes, whereas white tigers have stripes and blue eyes - and nor are they a different species or subspecies to normally coloured tigers. They are Bengal tigers with a genetic condition called leucism, which results in reduced pigmentation. This condition is also the cause of white lions, but is not known to occur in cheetahs.

Both albinism and leucism can and do occur in the wild, but are not common due to being passed on by recessive genes and being generally detrimental to the animal. A white individual usually does not survive to adulthood, since its colour makes it stand out to predators whilst it is young and defenceless. Those that do make it to adulthood have a tough time hunting for the same reason - they lack the natural camouflage of normally-coloured individuals, making it easier for their prey to spot them.

Answer 2

The Moghul Emperor of India, Jahangir, recorded having a white cheetah presented to him in 1608. In the memoirs of Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, the Emperor says that in the third year of his reign: "Raja Bir Singh Deo brought a white cheetah to show me. Although other sorts of creatures, both birds and beasts have white varieties .... I had never seen a white cheetah. Its spots, which are (usually) black, were of a blue colour, and the whiteness of the body also inclined to blue-ishness." This indicates the chinchilla mutation which restricts the amount of pigment on the hair shaft. Although the spots would have been formed of black pigment, the less dense pigmentation (it does not go all the way to the root of the hair) would have produced a hazy, bluish effect. As well as Jahangir's white cheetah at Agra, a report of "incipient albinism" has come from Beaufort West according to Guggisberg. The two sketches below show an isabelline cheetah and a maltese (blue) cheetah ("isabelline" means yellowish-fawn; maltese means "slate grey").

http://www.messybeast.com/genetics/mutan...

Answer 3

no, there are no white cheetahs. as for white tigers? they are not natural, nor are they found in the wild. white tigers come from a long line of in-breeding and come with health problems because of it. there are white leopards (snow leopards) which are natural and can be found in central and southern asia. they are obviously white for camoflauge.

Answer 4

Yes.  All mammalian species have the occasional albino, though it is very, very rare.