Tanzania's Tarangire National Park is now home to an incredibly rare white giraffe. The one year old calf was spotted in the park recently, and has garnered lots of attention for her distinctive looks, which are made possible because she has a genetic condition called leucism that doesn't allow her skin to make a pigment, which results in the pale color.anzania's
The giraffe – which has been named Omo after a popular local detergent – was first spotted in the park last year as a newborn. But, she was recently seen again, making local rangers very happy. Over the course of the past year she has grown significantly in size and stature, and appears to be a healthy member of the giraffe population in every way. That is a good sign for the adolescent animal, as National Geographic says that about half of all baby giraffes die within the first six months.
But Omo isn't completely out of the woods just yet. In addition to the natural threats to her life, officials at the park fear that she could become a target of poachers. To combat this threat they have employed highly trained tracking dogs and remotely piloted drones to patrol the region. Their hope is to spot any nefarious activity long before poachers could ever get close to the white giraffe.
Tarangire is a popular safari destination amongst visitors to Tanzania. That means that some lucky travelers will get a chance to spot Omo in her natural habitat. That would be an amazing sight indeed, and on par with the rare white lions that were recently spotted in South Africa as well.
