AssetID: 55099179
Headline: Happy Hatchday Claude! San Francisco's Beloved Albino Alligator Celebrates His 30th
Caption: Happy Hatchday Claude! San Francisco's Beloved Albino Alligator Celebrates His 30th. One of San Francisco’s most unusual residents, Claude the albino alligator, marked a major milestone as he turned 30 on Monday. The California Academy of Sciences, where Claude has lived since 2008, is staging a month-long celebration throughout September to honour the striking white reptile, who has become one of the museum’s most recognisable attractions. This included a very special party on Sunday where visitors watched the middle-aged reptile chomp on a special hatchday cake. Guests included San Francisco Mayor David Lurie. Claude was born on 15 September 1995 in a Louisiana swamp. His pale colouring, caused by albinism, makes him stand out to visitors but would have left him highly vulnerable in the wild, both to predators and in hunting for prey. Instead, Claude was taken into human care, first living at the St Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park in Florida before being relocated to San Francisco. His arrival coincided with the reopening of the Academy’s Renzo Piano-designed home in Golden Gate Park. Alligators have been part of the Academy’s Steinhart Aquarium since it opened in 1923, but Claude is the first with albinism. It is estimated that only around 100 to 200 albino alligators exist worldwide. In human care, American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) like Claude can live for six or seven decades, meaning he could remain a star attraction in San Francisco for many years to come.
Keywords: Natural World,Albino,alligator,30th birthday,San Francisco,residents,Claude,milestone,California Academy of Sciences,reptile,museum,attraction,party,visitors,hatchday,cake,pale,colour,albinism,wild,predators,Golden Gate Park,Alligator mississippiensis,habitat,animals
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