Rare all-white killer whale spotted off coast of Alaska

(Photo by Sea World Australia via Getty Images)

(PETERSBURG, ALASKA) On Aug. 7, people and researchers aboard the Northern Song charter boat in Southeast Alaska witnessed something seen way less than once in a lifetime: a rare all-white killer whale.

Passengers saw the pod of orcas and observed that one of the whales appeared to be glowing. When the boat got closer, everyone realized what they were looking at. Instead of the typical mix of black and white coloring, the whale was completely white.

University of Alaska Fairbanks graduate student Stephanie Hayes, who works as the first mate on the boat, said, "There was a collective gasp from everybody on the bow," according to a press release from the university.

She added, "There have only been about eight white killer whales ever recorded in the world. To have one in Southeast was an incredible phenomenon.”

The captain of the boat, Dennis Rogers, said it was the first white killer whale he had ever seen and he captured the moment on video.

The whale has been observed before and is known by the name Tl'uk, a word for "moon" from the Coast Salish indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest, according to the press release.

Hayes said the white whale gets its distinct appearance from leucism, a condition that causes loss of pigmentation on the skin but not the eyes, and she hopes to be able to monitor it to see if scientists can learn more about the life a white killer whale.

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