The making of a myth: Albino animals of Bangladesh

It was a long time ago. Lokman Miaji, a local farmer of Moktarpur area in Bhawal Gajari Garh, was returning home after collecting ant eggs from the forest.

Lokman had a hobby of fishing. The ant eggs made the perfect bait. But on this day, Miaji had a hard time finding the eggs. As he made his way home through the thick vegetation one afternoon, daylight already started fading rapidly.

Lokman adopted a brisk pace for his walk. Today wasn't the day he intended to know the secrets of the forest.

After a few stops, he saw a white blur shoot past him. Was it a ghost? His eyes widened as he stared ahead. Then, there was another flash of white. It seemed like an animal of sorts with a complexion as white as milk.

Lokman froze as realisation dawned upon him – it was a tiger, a small one but an apex predator nonetheless. The tiger soon disappeared inside the foliage, leaving behind only fear.

The Miajis had been living near the Gajari forests for generations. Lokman had heard stories from his grandfather of the buffaloes roaming the forests. His father also told him the tale of a man-eating tiger, which called the forest its home.

Lokman had himself seen leopards at times. But he had never heard of a white tiger before.

Even after the tiger had left, Lokman stood still, almost hypnotised. That's when he saw that darkness had begun descending. That's when Lokman sprinted home.

The tale of Lokman's sighting soon spread like wildfire. Panic gripped the area as locals spoke in hushed tones of the mythical white beast.

Some may even have thought the entire sighting was a tall tale or a momentary illusion.

That is until they heard from Rashid.

Rashid, another local, had gone to the forest's edge for fishing. While waiting for his fishing line to move, he was suddenly alerted to a flash of white. Thinking it was a ghost, Rashid fainted.

He was rescued the next morning by villagers. When he said what he had seen, the fear in the locality increased.

Something had to be done.

Lokman decided it was time to call a hunter. The time of the legendary Edward James Corbett was long gone. No such famed man-eating tiger hunter existed, but Lokman turned to the second best option.

Hunters often came to the Gajari forest. Lokman convinced one of them that if they hunted the beast, the fear gripping the village could finally be lifted.

The hunter they found was quite experienced and had a deep knowledge of the forest. He went to the jungle with Lokman, inspecting the tracks left behind by animals and other signs.

That's when the real story came to the fore.

The animal which had given so many nightmares was only a fishing cat, a mid-sized found across Southeast Asia, although its conservation status was considered endangered.

As for its ghostly white colour, it was a case of albinism.

The cat, a male, had albinism – which affected the production of melanin, the pigment that colours skin, hair and eye.

Because of the condition, its skin was devoid of any other colour.

While that chapter ended there, the fascination with albino animals is well-documented.

A taste for the rare

Different from natives, albino animals are of special interest and pique curiosity in not only ordinary people, but also to wildlife experts and photographers.

Albino animals can be found all over the world, although the number is few.

The predilection for albino animals, however, also means they are prized by wild animal smugglers, as there is a huge demand for such creatures in black markets across the world.

An albino fishing cat was also brought to Shitesh Babu's mini zoo in Srimangal a decade ago.

Wildlife lovers, wildlife experts and photographers from different parts of the country rushed to Shitesh Babu's house to document the animal.

As recently as four years ago, an albino tiger was born in the Chattogram zoo, which also became a national fascination.

While the condition is rare, it can affect any animal, including the Golden Jackal.

There are few in the country who have never seen a Golden Jackal, given how widespread the animal is especially in rural Bangladesh.

But how many have seen a white jackal?

Thrill of the chase

Indeed, even within the reclusive jackal group, an albino one was recently spotted by photographer Almas Zaman.

He didn't capture one, but a pair of albino Golden Jackal, shorn of their golden fur, which was replaced by a full white coat.

Photographer Almas Zaman first learned about the white jackals through a wildlife group.

Any wildlife photographer is bound to get excited at news like this.

Almas was possessed with the dream of capturing the animals with his lenses.

He tracked them down but there was another problem.

Jackals usually leave their dens a little before dusk, meaning there is insufficient light to get really good shots.

Almas tried day after day. Finally, he got the perfect conditions. And in his frame, the white jackals were immortalised forever.

"The locals are very sympathetic towards the jackals. They guard them. Chickens from different farms are also brought to feed them," he said.

Famous wild animal expert Mohammad Ali Reza Khan said the safety of these rare animals must be ensured.

"They are young. If we can keep them alive, more white jackals will be seen in the wild," he said.

Ali Reza, however, said animals need protection regardless of their specie or colour of their coat.

"Animals are a precious resource. As long as we cannot ensure their safety, we have no right to the claim of being a civilised nation."