The Great White Part 8: Fair Furs Quiz

Answer: Ptarmigan

Lagopus muta is commonly known as the ptarmigan or rock ptarmigan. Its annual change of plumage is a form of seasonal camouflage, as the heathland, mountain slopes and tundra where it makes its home is covered in vegetation in summer (when a bright white bird would be instantly obvious to predators) and snow in the winter (when a brown bird would have the exactly the same problem). To solve this awkward problem, the ptarmigan simply moults off its brown feathers as winter approaches - so if you spot one in the autumn then it might have an interesting mottled brown-and-white appearance.

Question submitted by Fifiona81.

Answer: Turkish Angora

While a significant number of breeds allow pure white cats, there are very few that require the color. This is not least due to the fact that inherited deafness and blindness are common problems in white cats and thus it is very difficult to avoid these defects. For the Turkish Angora, blindness is not a major issue, but deafness can occur in a substantial share of blue-eyed animals (those with green or amber eyes are unaffected).

Lovers of the Turkish Angora particularly treasure odd-eyed cats - cats having one blue and one amber eye, often appearing as silver and gold.

Question submitted by WesleyCrusher.

Answer: Butterflies (Lepidoptera)

The great white and the small white are very similar butterflies, in adult form showing white-yellowish wings. The great white's wings have a black tip, and female great whites also have two black spots on the wings. The small white has no black wingtips, but all adults sport some black spots on the wings. The caterpillars of both species feed on cabbages and related plants, hence also the name cabbage white (especially for the great white).

There are a great white owl and a great white shark, but they have no "small" counterpart. The small white pig is extinct, and there has not been a great white pig.

Question submitted by JanIQ.

Answer: A variation in colouring within the same species

The reddish egret is a medium-sized bird in the heron family found in southern coastal areas of the United States, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean islands and the Bahamas. Adult reddish egrets have two different morphs or colour variations. Those with a dark morph are a dark smokey grey with a red head and neck feathers; those with a white morph have entirely white plumage. The morph remains constant from birth. Egrets from one morph may mate with egrets from the other morph.

The species is considered threatened, particularly in the United States, where they are the rarest heron species.

Question submitted by pitegny.

Answer: Fennec fox

Vulpes lagopus, or the Arctic fox, is native to the Arctic region and is known for its thick, warm, white fur that acts as a camouflage in the snow. Arctic foxes are small animals (46-68 centimetres, or 18-27 inches) and have a relatively short life span, of only three to four years, in the wild. The Arctic fox lives on a diet of carrion, small animals, berries and seaweed.

Question submitted by Lones78.

Answer: Kermode or Spirit Bear

The Kermode bear is a North American Black Bear, found mainly in British Columbia, which has white fur due to a recessive gene. Approximately 10 per cent of the black bears in the region are Kermode or Spirit Bears. It is not an albino; it has dark eyes, nose lips and paws. It is also not related to the Polar bear. Its light colouring cause it to stand out in the dark green forest areas which form its habitat.

The Spirit Bear is of great significance to the Canadian First People, and is designated as British Columbia's official animal.

Question submitted by windrush

Answer: Northern and Southern

Northern white rhinos are critically endangered and functionally extinct. This is because there are no more living known males of the species. The remaining female northern white rhinos can be found in Kenya living on a wildlife preservation. The southern white rhinos are more numerous and can be found in Southern Africa. Conservation efforts to save the southern white rhino have been very successful.

Question submitted by Joepetz.

Answer: Himalayas

The snow leopard is native to Central and South Asia and usually found in the high mountains of this region. Its habitat ranges from Afghanistan and Russia in the west to Bhutan and China in the east. The snow leopard is a solitary creature and sightings of this reticent creature are rare. This has earned it the nickname of the "Ghost of the Himalayas". Snow leopards have thick creamy or yellow tinged coats with large patterned spots called rosettes. Their colour helps them to blend into the snow clad mountains where they live.

Question submitted by zorba_scank.

Answer: Honduran white bat

The Honduran white bat (Ectophylla alba) is found in Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and western Panama. It has high concentrations of carotenoids, giving it bright yellow nose-leaf, ears and lips. It is one of only six bat species to have all-white fur; its wing membranes are black.

An adult's head and body length is less than 2 inches, and weight is 5 to 6 grams. It is a tent-making bat, cutting helliconia leaves to form a shelter.

Question submitted by windrush.

Answer: They are rare, but they do exist

Although rare, they are an actual animal. On August 20th, 1994, on a ranch in Janesville, USA, a single pure white buffalo calf was born. The calf was not an albino, but an animal exhibiting a form of albinism where there is no melanin in skin pigmentation but her eyes were blue instead of the familiar pink albino eyes. Her name is Miracle and the local tribes celebrated her birth as a time of purification and renewal for the children of Mother Earth.

Question supplied by em1958