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• #White lion and white tiger series

Later, Mohan and his various descendants were bred extensively with one another, establishing a lineage of white tigers.Īlthough a few more white tigers were later found among Eurasia’s Bengal and Siberian tiger populations, allowing breeders to add a little variety to the gene pool, humans wanting to keep producing the variant - and there is certainly demand from zoogoers and collectors worldwide - ultimately need close tiger relatives to breed.

It was not until Mohan was mated with one of his own daughters that the match finally produced a white cub. Apparently lacking a background in genetics, the maharaja was doubtless disappointed to find that none of Mohan’s offspring shared his coloring.

#White lion and white tiger series

Hoping to produce more white tigers for his collection, the maharaja set Mohan up on a series of romantic encounters with another, normally colored tiger. In May 1951, the maharaja of Rewa, India, captured Mohan while he was still a cub. The most illustrious of these ancestors is a white tiger known as Mohan, or “enchanter.” The difficulty of breeding the tigers means that currently, many of the white tigers in zoos, wildlife parks, and private menageries around the world are descended from one of just a few bloodlines.

Just because it’s not a defect doesn’t mean their white fur isn’t something of a curse, however. In the wild, white tigers can live as long as any other tiger, though perhaps not 500 years. It’s an exceedingly rare, recessive trait - but not a genetic defect. These mutations turn the tigers’ base hair color white, leaving their black stripes intact. On the other hand, according to research conducted by Peking University researcher Luo Shujin, white tigers’ distinctive coloring is caused by genetic mutations that affect the synthesis of yellow and red pigments in their hair and skin. When a tiger reaches the age of 500, the belief goes, it turns white and transforms into a god - provided the emperor is virtuous and his kingdom prosperous. Zhang Yong/CNS/VCGĪccording to Chinese mythology, the white tiger is the king of the animal kingdom and the guardian of the west. White lions rest in the shade at Jinan Wildlife Zoo in Jinan, Shandong province, July 10, 2018. It incentivizes their managers to divert needed funds and attention away from conservation and education - in other words, their mission - and toward gimmicky, crowd-pleasing exhibits. But this craze - which is by no means confined to China - is having a negative impact on resource-strapped zoos. White lions aren’t the only unusually colored animals stalking the country’s wildlife parks: If anything, their numbers and popularity pale in comparison with the country’s captive white tigers. I wish I could say Tianshan was the only park to have made this mistake, but I’ve seen the same passage at two other Chinese zoos. The nonsense on the plaque appears to have been copied word-for-word from Baidu Baike - China’s version of Wikipedia. There’s just one problem: There’s no such thing as an “Arctic lion.” The animals are actually the result of naturally occurring genetic mutations in African lions.

Arctic lions would indeed be quite the draw at any zoo. “Research conducted by scientists has shown that white lions may be an ancient species that once lived in the Arctic and other cold, snow-covered lands,” it reads. So, you may be in for a shock if you turn your eyes to the plaque explaining the nigh-unbelievable story of the lions’ provenance. The white lion exhibit might be the pride of the northwestern city of Urumqi’s Tianshan Wildlife Park, but curious visitors would do well to temper their expectations: The park’s white lions are really more of a dirty beige, mangier than they are menacing. The first piece in the series can be found here. This is the second piece in a series on Chinese zoos.