A viral rare albino buffalo, named as ‘Donald Trump’, has been transferred to the Bangladesh National Zoo in Dhaka for public display and long-term preservation and research.

On Thursday, a huge number of visitors entered the zoo to see the buffalo, according to Atiqur Rahman, the curator of the zoo.

‘The buffalo has already gone viral on social media for its exceptional colour and shape. It is also a subject for research, which is why it has been placed in the zoo,’ Atiqur Rahman said.

Its special features stem from a genetic fault with an occurrence ratio of one in 10 million, he explained.

While most of these special animals have poor reproductive records, authorities will try to breed this buffalo, Atiqur noted.

‘The zoo keeps these types of animals to preserve them for research and display them so that the public can learn about them,’ he stated, adding that the zoo expected many more visitors during this Eid holiday.

Earlier, on Wednesday—just a day before Eid-ul-Azha—the police took the buffalo into their custody. Keraniganj police officer-in-charge Ruhul Quddus said. The animal was taken into custody citing security concerns.

The police officer mentioned that the home ministry ordered the police to take custody of the buffalo after the US Embassy expressed reservations about it being sacrificed.

The buffalo, weighing about 700 kg, became a major attraction ahead of Eid-ul-Azha in Narayanganj. It was being raised at Rabeya Agro Farm in the Paikpara area, where visitors gathered daily to see the animal.

Farm owners often give their animals iconic names as a trend to attract buyers before Eid-ul-Azha.

Due to its name, the buffalo quickly became a topic of both national and international media attention.