Are the Kermode bears of British Columbia albinos?
No, the “spirit bears” of British Columbia are not albinos but simply another color variation. If they were albinos, they would lack color pigment in their eyes and skin as well as in their fur. While exceedingly rare and primarily isolated to a few islands off the coast of British Columbia, these white bears are as normal and healthy as any black-colored black bear. Their color arises from a mutation in a particular chromosome that is responsible for coat color. The mutation did not prove lethal to the individual(s) who initially carried it, so it remained in the “genetic” population. Since island populations are isolated, breeding occurs in a rather small circle of individuals, thus passing the gene more quickly than would otherwise occur. This allowed the gene to become prevalent, and now one in every ten cubs born on these islands is white in color. A black sow can give birth to a white cub, and visa versa. In fact, cubs of a variety of colors can occur in the same litter. In 1997,
