“[Other seals] notice that there is something WRONG with this “ugly duckling” but they’re more just curious, NOT aggressive,” the biologist told Bored Panda. Currently, the albino seal is being monitored, and in case it is rejected by other seals, wildlife specialists are ready to rescue the mammal and hand it to a dolphinarium.
After his video capturing the little albino seal got a lot of attention, the biologist posted another photo, but this time, it was a different albino seal that was spotted back in 2017 by photographer Sergey Fomin.
“The animal was 2 or 3 years old and physically in good shape, even though it was clear it had poor sight,” Burkanov writes in his post. “The albino is now a mature bull of 5-6 years old. He did not participate in reproduction this season and was seen on the bachelor section of the rookery only. Perhaps this is the first documented case of the survival of a northern fur seal of an abnormal color to adulthood.”