Scientists spot white killer whale off Alaska

[Fluffybunny]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- The white killer whale spotted in Alaska's Aleutian Islands sent researchers and the ship's crew scrambling for their cameras.The nearly mythic creature was real after all. "I had heard about this whale, but we had never been able to find it," said Holly Fearnbach, a research biologist with the National Marine Mammal Laboratory in Seattle who photographed the rarity. "It was quite neat to find it." The whale was spotted last month while scientists aboard the Oscar Dyson, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research ship, were conducting an acoustic survey of pollock near Steller sea lion haulout sites. It had been spotted once in the Aleutians years ago but had eluded researchers since, even though they had seen many of the more classic black and white whales over the years.

Fearnbach said the white whale stood out.

Link to rest of article

[MissMelsWell]

Very very cool!

I used to live out on Whidbey Island off Possession Bar in WA State (His Fluffiness likely knows where that is)... and every spring the A Pod of Orca's would come through the area. I never got tired of looking out the living room windows trying to spot them. They're nothing short of majestic.

[Neognosis]

Moby Dick was a white sperm whale. Not that it matters.

I wonder how long this white whale will survive. Is there one single mutant whale, or is this a new subspecies? Sounds like just a few odd mutants.

However, if there is some benefit to being white, and they pass on their white genes.....

Edited March 7, 2008 by Neognosis

[Cetacea]

Moby Dick was a white sperm whale. Not that it matters.

I wonder how long this white whale will survive. Is there one single mutant whale, or is this a new subspecies? Sounds like just a few odd mutants.

However, if there is some benefit to being white, and they pass on their white genes.....

By the size and shape of it's dorsal, especially compared to the other animals in the pod (http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/images/whiteorca3.jpg), I would think it's an adult male, females and juveniles have more curved fins, hence he seems to have survived the most problematic years already. It would be interesting to see how his colouration affects his reproductive success though. Even if he is highly successful though i doubt we will see a lot more white whales in the near future, albinism is usually a recessive trait as far as i know and even if he is not a true albino I would guess that his condition is recessive rather than dominant as well.

I don't think it's a subspecies, while there is a subspecies of orca that can be more grey than black, this is found predominantly in the Antarctic waters.

There have been other white orcas, one was documented in Canada in the 70s, she was captured and brought into an aquarium where she died two years later….

This is a picture of her:

Edited March 9, 2008 by Cetacea

[louie]

Are there any more pics of the white whale, i can only find the 1 on the link.

[Cetacea]

Are there any more pics of the white whale, i can only find the 1 on the link.

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/i.../whiteorca1.jpg

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/i.../whiteorca2.jpg

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/i.../whiteorca3.jpg

[Ball Lightning]

Very interesting! Its rarity reminds me of that of the yellow shark. Possibly even rarer?

[beluga whale]

I think this is not a killer whale but in fact a beluga whale view pic.

pic

[Mattshark]

I think this is not a killer whale but in fact a beluga whale view pic.

pic

Not with that dorsal fin it isn't.

[Cetacea]

Not with that dorsal fin it isn't.

I agree it is definitely a killer whale, an adult male judging by the shape of the dorsal fin, you can even see the eye and saddle patch on some of the pictures and he is in company of other killer whales. The melon and rostrum is also subtley a different shape

This is what a surfacing beluga looks like:

They do not have a proper dorsal fin, merely a ridge:

Compare to:

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/i.../whiteorca2.jpg

Edited February 20, 2009 by Cetacea

[ravergirl]

I know water distorts size, but the mouth seems too narrow for a killer whale, it looks like a large dolphin

[Cetacea]

I know water distorts size, but the mouth seems too narrow for a killer whale, it looks like a large dolphin

The orca is in fact the largest dolphin there is

[ravergirl]

The orca is in fact the largest dolphin there is

yeah, After I posted that I facepalmed and hoped no one would call me on that....no such luck.

I mean that the face looks very narrow, but the dorsal is classic orca.

[Cetacea]

yeah, After I posted that I facepalmed and hoped no one would call me on that....no such luck.

I mean that the face looks very narrow, but the dorsal is classic orca.

I think that can be deceiving depending on the angle, the dorsal fin is male orca all the way and it's supported by the saddle and eye patch, the size compared to the other orcas also rules out any other species. Even if it was smaller I would be dubious, most smaller dolphin species I doubt would hang out with orcas at least not with transients (which I assume these are as this rather conspicious male has not been spotted more often)....

Edited February 20, 2009 by Cetacea