Stunning albino blackbuck at IIT Madras sparks viral awe and alarms too

An extremely rare and stunning white blackbuck was recently spotted freely roaming inside the IIT Madras campus. An albino blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra) is an exceptionally rare variant characterised by a complete lack of melanin, a natural pigment that is the primary determinant of skin, hair and eye color.

Another video of an albino blackbuck racing across Manohar C Watsa Stadium in IIT Madras had gone viral in June 2025. Previous instances of its sighting from IIT Madras indicate presence of a gene pool of albinism in the region. But this also raises a concern. Here's why....

Video Editor: Rajbir Singh