Animal Kingdom’s Easiest Animal to Spot Might Also Be Its Rarest: Meet Quartz

Disney’s Animal Kingdom has a new resident that guests may notice faster than any other animal in the habitat. Quartz, an albino wallaby joey, is now living at Jumping Junction, where her white fur and pink features make her stand out among the park’s kangaroos and wallabies.

The change is already in place for Animal Kingdom visitors heading to Conservation Station. Disney introduced Quartz as the newest joey at Jumping Junction, the walk through habitat shared by kangaroos and wallabies, and said her appearance makes her one of a kind at the park.

Quartz has snow white fur, pink eyes and a pink nose. Disney has shown her peeking from a pouch carried by an adult wallaby with the more typical brown coloring seen across the rest of the mob, and also moving through the habitat on her own. Disney shared Quartz in the Instagram post below.

Why Quartz is unusual

Disney said Quartz was born with albinism, a recessive trait that requires an animal to inherit the genetic mutation from both parents. That means both of her parents carry the mutation, which is what makes her arrival so uncommon.

Because albinism limits pigment, Quartz is white rather than brown like the other animals around her. Disney also said she is receiving dedicated care from the animal care team and continues to be a happy, healthy joey.

Where to find her, and what guests should expect

Quartz lives at Jumping Junction in Conservation Station. Guests can get there by going to Harambe Station in the Africa section of Animal Kingdom and taking the Wildlife Express Train. The habitat is near Bluey’s Wild World and is home to red kangaroos, western grey kangaroos and red necked wallabies, also known as Bennett’s wallabies.

Jumping Junction replaced the Affection Section this spring and opened alongside the Bluey’s Wild World takeover as a nod to the show’s Australian roots. During a limited soft opening in June, animal care cast members led small groups along a paved path while kangaroos and wallabies moved freely around guests. Touching the animals was not allowed.

Disney has said guest access is expected to expand over time as the animal care team helps the animals adjust to sharing their space, so visitors should check availability on the day of their visit. Anyone hoping to spot Quartz may need patience, since joeys spend a lot of time in the pouch. Disney’s photos place her both with an adult wallaby and in the sandy, fern filled parts of the habitat, and cast members may know whether she has been active that day.