A pride of white lions, consisting of two adult males and two young females, has been released into Sanbona Wildlife Reserve in South Africa’s Western Cape Province.
The release is the result of a year-long White Lion Project, sponsored by the Shamwari Dubai World Africa Conservation team. The white lions, which are also called blond lions, are the same species as the African lions (Panthera leo). Their blondish-white colouring is the result of a recessive malformed gene; hence cubs born to more tawny-coloured lions could carry this recessive gene (without showing a blond coat) and still pass it on to future generations. Like most recessive genes, if an offspring receives two copies of that genetic mutation, the trait, such as blondness, will show up. The white-lion mutation might have been observed in a wild population of lions in South Africa. Naturally occurring mutations have been seen from time to time in the wild,’ says George Amato, a conservation biologist and geneticist at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Amato was not part of the lion release. According to the Project scientists, white lions were first seen in the wild 400 years ago, then again in 1928, and then 50 years later a litter of two white cubs was documented in the Timbavati Game Reserve in South Africa. Although white lions are rare in the wild, breeding programs, zoos and circuses have made more of them.
“I believe that they probably increased the frequency of that mutation either through selective breeding or inbreeding,” Amato said. Whether blond or tawny-coloured, African lion populations are declining, due to poaching, habitat destruction (i.e. land development) and diseases. The IUCN, or International Union for Conservation of Nature, lists the species as ’vulnerable,’ and ’regionally endangered’ in West Africa. Conservation efforts generally strive to reduce human impacts on animals suffering in the wild. ’Conservation as an attempt is basically about trying to maintain elements of the naturally occurring system to the best that you can,’ Amato said.
While the blond lions are a pretty sight in their wild environment, their colouring could contradict health issues. The reason being in order to maintain the white colouring, the lions had to be inbred, ensuring two copies of the recessive mutation would get passed down to an offspring. ’The most suitable way to try to create more of them is to inbreed them,’ Amato told Live Science. ’But then there are a lot of problems with inbreeding, because not only are you more likely to get two copies of that same mutation [for white colouring]; you’re also likely to get two copies of the rare deleterious mutations that all individuals have. That’s generally why inbreeding is bad.’ In addition, inbreeding reduces genetic variability, meaning the lions’ immune systems could be weaker than that of their relatives. Members of the White Lion Project wanted to boost the genetic integrity of captive-bred white lions. In order to do this, the researchers bred the offspring of white lions with the tawny-coloured variety.
At present, the pride is being closely monitored by members of the Shamwari Dubai World Africa Conservation team. While the pride members may separate and wander, the pride released at Sanbona Wildlife Reserve’s 100,000 acres (40,000 hectares) will ultimately reunite, the Sanbona scientists say.
The Conservation Projects was Released at Sanbona Wildlife Reserve
