Researchers searching for the endangered turtle species in Australia have made an even rarer discovery – a white platypus swimming in a stream in New South Wales.
Photos and videos of this unique platypus have been published in a scientific journal after researchers spotted it multiple times over the past two years, according to a report by The Guardian on November 2.
PhD candidate Lou Streeting from the University of New England (UNE) in Australia first discovered the mysterious platypus in early 2021 while searching for the endangered turtle species Myuchelys bellii in a stream in the Northern Tablelands region of New South Wales.
The rare white platypus swimming in a stream in New South Wales, Australia. (Photo: SCREENSHOT THE GUARDIAN).
She has seen this platypus several times since then, with the most recent sighting occurring three months ago, indicating that it seems to lack camouflage ability.
A white platypus has been recorded in the past, but the newly reported individual has a key distinction: it is not an albino because only part of its body is affected by a lack of pigmentation – the pigment that colors fur, skin, and eyes.
“It still has pigment. It has a black bill, black feet, and a bit of color on its tail. So we believe it to be a platypus with leucism“, Streeting noted.
This could be the first recorded case of a leucistic platypus in scientific literature.
“Searching through scientific literature, news articles, and databases has yielded 12 different records of albino platypuses or atypical white platypuses, with the first case appearing in 1835. Our discovery may be the only known record of a leucistic platypus,” Streeting stated.
The Australian Conservation Organization has reported that the population of platypuses – egg-laying mammals with mammary glands but no nipples (though they are still classified as mammals) – is declining, with about 25% of their habitat lost over the past 30 years.
