Footage shows incredibly rare all black emperor penguin

'First footage' of the ALL BLACK emperor penguin! David Attenborough's BBC crews release newly-edited film of incredibly rare bird that is almost completely covered in dark feathers because of a genetic mutation Incredibly rare emperor penguin has been spotted among a crowd of others   The flightless bird is covered in black feathers instead of a white underbelly lip was caught on BBC's Dynasties who said that the footage is 'a first' Its appearance is the result of extremely rare genetic mutation called melanism 

By Victoria Bell For Mailonline

Published: 12:43 GMT, 19 February 2019 | Updated: 13:13 GMT, 19 February 2019

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An incredibly rare emperor penguin which is almost completely covered in feathers has been spotted among a colony of others in the Antarctic.

Footage shows the bird standing among hundreds of other emperors with distinctive black backs and heads, white underbellies and yellow patches on their necks. 

Unlike its counterparts, the rare specimen has not got a white underbelly - the result of a rare genetic mutation called melanism.

The clip was caught by BBC'S wildlife programme Dynasties, who say that this could be the first time anyone has captured an all black emperor penguin on film.

The all-black emperor 'looked healthy' and in search of a mate with the other penguins which are huddling together for warmth.

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An incredibly rare emperor penguin has been spotted among a crowd of others with a genetic mutation that is covered almost entirely in black feathers. Unlike its black and white counterparts, the rare specimen has not got a white underbelly

An incredibly rare emperor penguin has been spotted among a crowd of others with a genetic mutation that is covered almost entirely in black feathers. Unlike its black and white counterparts, the rare specimen has not got a white underbelly

Melanism, a development of a dark-coloured pigment, is a widely known mutation in the animal kingdom. 

Complete melanism like this has been seen before in king penguins, but it is extremely rare in an emperor penguin. 

All mature emperor penguins have a dark grey back, a pure white belly and and jet-black head, tail and top side of their flippers. 

They have a coloured yellow ring covering

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