An incredibly rare albino dolphin was discovered by researchers in the Mediterranean who believe the remarkable mammal is one of only 20 to exist in the world.
Nicknamed “Albus” by the marine research team, the male bottlenose dolphin appeared to be in good health when it was spotted swimming off the coasts of Croatia and Italy, Central European News reports.
When experts first caught glimpse of Albus, he was gracefully skimming through the waters outside of the eastern Italian port city of Ravenna.
“This appears to be the first albino dolphin spotted not only in the Adriatic Sea, but in the entire Mediterranean,” said a spokesperson for Plavi Svijet, a Croatian environmental organization.
“Albus was, when we met, with another, normally colored bottlenose dolphin,” he added. “Both animals swam and fished, and almost completely ignored us.”
Despite their groundbreaking discovery, the scientists who stumbled upon Albus urged others to let the extraordinary creature live out his life in peace.
“Please don’t try to track him or follow him,” one said. “The only animal a dolphin has to fear in these waters is man.”