This
Safari cat is "melanistic". A "melanistic" cat is one
where the color of his/her hair has become black or nearly black due to
an increase in the amount of a chemical called melanin in the cat. In
an albino cat the opposite situation has occured. Changes (mutations)
in the Agouti gene is the driving force behind the increase in melanin.
Lots of cats and other animals have this condition. It seems though
that not a lot is known about how it exactly occurs.