White orcas, like this one spotted in the Strait of Georgia near Saturna Island, are rare. Whale watchers said the one seen in California may be leucistic or have a condition known as Chediak-Higashi syndrome.
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Whale watchers in California spotted a “super rare” white orca.The orca was hunting in a pack with its mother, according to Monterey Bay Whale Watch.The whale is believed to be around four years old.
A ‘super rare’ white killer whale dazzled watchers in California as it hunted with its mother.
Monterey Bay Whale Watch announced the spotting of the orca whale named “Frosty” on October 15 in a Facebook post.
“FROSTY IS IN THE BAY!!! We are with Frosty right now!!!,” the post says.
The company later posted video footage of Frosty traveling and hunting with another group of whales and his mother.
“Frosty the super rare white Killer Whale!! Along with his mother and the CA140Bs,” one post reads.
In the post, MBWW said that Frosty is possibly leucistic or may have a condition known as Chediak-Higashi syndrome.
Leucism is a condition that causes the pigmentation of the skin to be pale due to a “glitch” in the skin cells, similar to albinism, a biology professor at the University of St Andrews’ sea mammal research unit said, according to The Guardian. Chediak-Higashi syndrome is a genetic disorder that can cause easy bruising, albinism, and recurrent infections, according to a study published in the National Library of Medicine.
The whales hunted an elephant seal and at least one California sea lion while together on October 15, sharing the carcasses among themselves, according to MBWW.
The organization estimates Frosty’s age to be around four years old and believes his birthday to have been around July or August of 2019. The last time the whale was spotted in Monterey Bay, he was with his mother and the same group of whales that he was spotted with this time, according to the organization.