Extremely Rare White Giraffe Spotted-What Would You Name Her?

Omo the white giraffe has been spotted roaming around Tarangire National Park, in Tanzania, along with the rest of her herd.

Omo has been especially lucky: More than half of all giraffe calves die before they’re six months old, as they’re often targets of lions, hyenas, and wild dogs, according to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation.

She might stick out like a sore thumb against the greenery of the African bush, but these are in fact vary rare pictures of a seldom-spotted white giraffe.

“One way to tell the difference between albino and leucistic animals is that albino individuals lack melanin everywhere, including in the eyes, so the resulting eye color is red from the underlying blood vessels”, the organization wrote.

Wildlife watchers at WNI say Omo gets her unusual coloration because her body surface cells are not capable of making pigment, but she is not albino. “Fortunately, Omo lives in a national park where she has the highest chance of survival thanks to anti-poaching efforts in the area”.

Lee said he’s observed leucistic waterbuck, Cape buffalo and ostrich in Tarangire, but Omo is the only pale giraffe “they’re now aware of”.

“We were thrilled to find her alive and well”, Lee, who has been studying giraffes with digital photos since 2011, said Tuesday. Giraffe calves are a favorite meal for many predators, and her pale color probably makes her more conspicuous to predators.

The giraffe, named Omo, was photographed in Tarangire National Park by ecologist Dr Derek Lee.

We absolutely LOVE Omo already and hope he has a long and healthy life!