For the past 18 months I have been monitoring two albino sibling hedgehogs living free amongst other wild hedgehogs in York, UK. Despite all the dismal forecasts concerning their survival they have so far managed to get through one winter in the UK. I recently found the male who weighed 1122g, a good weight for an adult male hedgehog. Does anyone have any comments regarding the rate of survival in the wild of other albino members of any small mammal species?
This topic is interesting, I would imagine that the primary factor would be whether that species relies on crypsis or not for avoiding predation or finding food (e.g. ambush predators). For species that need to avoid detection, being albino should be a distinct disadvantage. However if the species has others ways of avoiding predation e.g. your hedgehogs might rely more on their spines than crypsis, it may not be such a disadvantage. So to my mind, the less a species relies on crypsis, or the further up the food chain it is (unless they rely on crypsis to catch prey), the less being albino should effect them. Now sexual selection is another issue, can albinos find mates? If the sexually selected trait is independent of colour then usually this isn't a problem. For instance I've heard of anecdotal accounts from colleagues in Germany who once saw an albino deer, and within a few years other albino deer were being seen more regularly. Because deer sexually select for antler size, this albino did not seem disadvantaged.
So.. the short answer is, it depends on the species! Although there doesn't seem to be a lot of literature on this, perhaps because albinos occur so infrequently.
Good luck with your hedgehogs!
I would agree with Owen. The hedgehogs may not be effected by being albino since they seem to go about their business without much real concern for predation. That spiked armor they have. Other small mammals such as mice and rabbits have a distinct disadvantage with albinism. They are primarily prey and without the ability to blend in they do not survive long in the wild.
It would be terribly interesting to follow your two hedgehogs and see if they find mates and produce any offspring. Also to see if their parent produces more albinos in subsequent litters.
Thanks for your feedback Owen and Mary. I am indeed monitoring both albinos using Reconyx I-R cameras. This has enabled me to keep track of the male for the past 13 months; he has recently hibernated. I thought that the female had failed to survive last winter as there had been no appearances on the cameras/ However, an eyewitness account confirmed that both are still in the area so it would appear that the route taken by the female bypasses the cameras!
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