Mob of rare albino kangaroos spotted at Panorama Wildlife Sanctuary in Melbourne
Terrifying mob of albino kangaroos gathered in a nature reserve: ‘Wow, you don’t normally see more than one’
- Crowd of nine white and albino rose spotted
- The rare animals live in a shelter in Melbourne
A rare group of white kangaroos has been spotted in a nature reserve in Australia.
The white kangaroos hopped through the grass at Panorama Wildlife Sanctuary and Secret Gardens near Boneo on Melbourne’s Mornington Peninsula.
The wildlife sanctuary shared photos of their albino eastern gray kangaroos on their Facebook page on Monday with the caption, “The mob.”
The photos show the strong contrast of the white marsupials with the dark gray and brown fur of the common eastern kangaroo.
The sanctuary owner, Annemaree Van Rooy, told Daily Mail Australia that the property is home to nine white and albino kangaroos.
The rare marsupials hopped through the grass at Panorama Wildlife Sanctuary and Secret Gardens near Boneo on Melbourne’s Mornington Peninsula (pictured)
The 25-hectare reserve has nine white and albino kangaroos and is home to a host of other wildlife
Ms Rooy, along with her partner Mick Smith, breaded the rare ‘rose’ after rescuing three from a farm in Bordertown, South Australia, in 2012.
“We rescued three albino kangaroos that were kept in small cages and now we have a mob of about nine,” Ms Rooy said.
“They come and go as they please in the reserve and they live as they should in the wild.”
Facebook users were stunned by the snow-white fur of the kangaroos, with many wanting to visit the sanctuary to get a glimpse of the beautiful animals.
“Wow, you don’t normally see more than one,” one person commented.
‘So much white, just beautiful. I’d like to see them sometime,” wrote another.
A third agreed: ‘And I thought albino roses were rare! But not at Panorama.’
Ms. Rooy explained that the 55-acre estate started as a family home, but quickly turned into a retreat with 21 acres of gardens.
‘This is my house, this is where I live’, Mrs Rooy said.
“We started this because I have a passion for animals and their welfare and am always looking for animals in need of rescue.”
Recently rescued animals include two alpacas, two pigs, ten sheep, a calf, two donkeys and a very large horse.
The reserve welcomed its first white joey in 2020 when an eastern gray kangaroo mated with a ‘roo with the rare genetic mutation (pictured)
The menagerie also features other wildlife such as peacocks, guinea fowl, mini goats, geese, emus, and swans.
Ms Rooy said the sanctuary expects the crowd of albino kangaroos to grow and hopes to hear the chatter of more joey paws soon.
The reserve welcomed its first white joey in 2020 when an eastern gray kangaroo mated with a ‘roo with the rare genetic mutation.
White kangaroos occur every 50,000 to 100,000 animals, caused by the rare phenomena of albinism or leucism.
Albinism is when a genetic mutation causes a total lack of pigmentation of the hair, eyes, and skin, while leucism is a defect in the pigment cells that can cause a white coat, but usually the skin and eyes are left unaffected.
Animals with albinism or leucism can face various problems to survive in the wild and are more likely to be targeted by poachers.