Albino bat found in Masbate

If bats, usually black and gray, make some people cringe, a white bat found in the island province of Masbate in Bicol may initially stir notions often associated with fangs and blood.   But hold that thought and let some cold logic of science dispel those notions.   GMA News’ 24 Oras reported on Friday that the reddish-eyed white bat of Masbate—an albino flying fox—is a fruit bat and has a diet that consists of fruit, nectar and flowers.   Masbate residents said they have seen more than one albino flying fox in the area, but the Department of Environment and Natural Resources said that when albino flying foxes such as the one in custody give birth, the offspring tend to be black already.   In 2007, another unusual species of flying fox was discovered in Mindoro, which biologist earlier thought did not exist.   Albinos, like the captive bat, share the same characteristics of the other members of their species and other members of the Animal Kingdom in that they lack the pigment melanin, which gives color of skin or scales, eyes and hair their normal color.   Albinism is genetic, and researchers estimate that in other mammals, only one in 10,000 are true albinos. In human beings, only one in 20,000 are albinos. — GCG/ELR, GMA News