Hi, All,
The other day I mentioned that I thought the albino/Cinnamon relationship
had been clearly worked out.  Bill Killian's response suggested that there
could be 2 albino traits.  I am aware of a 1960's study of a human
population in Maryland that strongly suggested 2 separate albino traits in
humans.  Also, there is a dominant albino trait in an African rivulan fish
commonly called a Kribensis, the only dominant albino I have ever heard of.
 
The following is what I considered 'clearly worked out':
 
Albino is a recessive trait that keeps other color or pattern traits from
expressing.  Like all simple recessives, a dose/allele must be present from
both parents for it to be expressed.  Remember Punit's Square, from high
school biology?  For instance, if the parents are Sables who came from
Albino mothers, 3/4 of their young would carry albino, but only 1/4 of the
their young would have 2 doses of the trait and appear as red-eyed white
ferrets.  What other color/pattern traits an albino carries are pure
speculation.  For instance, if all the non- albinoes in a litter are sable,
it is likely that the albinoes would also have been sable if the pigment had
not been kept from forming by a 'command' from the albino alleles.  And,
those albinoes can pass sable to their young if crossed to a non-albino.  If
the rest of the litter includes chocolates, blazes and DEW's, it is just a
guess as to what the Albinoes might carry, since albino hides all of those
types.
 
Cinnamon appears to be a variant albino.  It only partially limits the
production of pigment, and the color of the ferret can be patterned, or show
shade variations depending on what pigment is being limited.  For example,
my 3 Cinnamon Blazes, w/ a (tiny) white stripe on the head, and white
'knees', tail tip and bib.  I'm fairly sure a chocolate cinnamon is lighter
than a sable cinnamon, etc., but my personal experience is limited here.
 
Fara Shimbo says this trait is on the same locus as the true albino.  All I
really know is that my own cinnamon/albino crosses have never produced
anything but variations on those 2 color types.  Since these traits are both
recessive to sable, for instance, I would expect sables to pop up in these
crosses if the traits were not at the same location, working together as
joined recessive alleles.
 
One final observation.  With all the variation in color ferrets show both as
individuals in a litter and seasonally, I would not be too surprised if a
pale Chocolate were mis-classified as a Cinnamon, or a dark Cinnamon as a
Chocolate.
 
My apologies for such a long 'Lecture Mode'.  It was easier to just say
'clearly worked out'!
 
After all that, what is the evidence for an albino trait other than the
red-eyed white morph (call it albino I) and the cinnamon (albino morph 2)?
 
In those human studies back in the '60s that I mentioned above, the reason
to suspect 2 separate albino traits was that a family where both parents
were albino produced several normally colored children.  The researcher's
first thought was infidelity, but blood tests suggested that these were the
true parents.  Does anyone know of an albino/albino cross that produced
normally colored young?  W/ no chance of, uhh... infidelity?  This would be
the strongest evidence of separate traits.
 
By the way, Bill, I haven't received negative feedback for talking about
breeding here, and since this string was started on the FML I have continued
it here.  However, I have since joined the Ferret Forum, if you or others
prefer to move this sort of string to that list.
 
     Paul
[Posted in FML issue 1902]