Two Rare White Orcas Spotted Off Hokkaido, Japan — What Scientists Know

Fact Check: The sighting is legitimate. In June 2024, two unusually pale or white killer whales were photographed swimming with a larger pod off Rausu, Hokkaido, Japan. The photographs and accompanying video were attributed to Japanese wildlife photographer Tokuyuki Hayakawa. However, the exact biological cause of the whales' unusual coloration has not been definitively established.

Orcas are instantly recognizable for their dramatic black-and-white coloration. That is why photographs of two almost completely white killer whales swimming alongside normally colored members of their pod attracted widespread attention.

The remarkable encounter took place in the waters off Rausu on the Shiretoko Peninsula in Hokkaido, an area known for regular sightings of wild killer whales.

The 2024 Encounter Off Rausu

On June 17, 2024, wildlife photographer Tokuyuki Hayakawa encountered a pod of approximately 20 to 30 killer whales while aboard a whale-watching vessel near Rausu.

Among the normally colored orcas were two individuals with strikingly pale, cream-to-white coloration.

Hayakawa photographed the animals from multiple angles and also captured video footage showing the unusual whales moving with the larger group.

According to reports based on Hayakawa's original posts, the photographer had spent many years documenting orcas around Rausu and described the encounter as his first time personally seeing white orcas there.

The images quickly spread online, with some people even questioning whether the unusual appearance had been created digitally. Hayakawa subsequently addressed those claims and said the photographs had not been manipulated.

Are the Orcas Albino or Leucistic?

This is where the story needs some scientific caution.

When an animal appears almost completely white, albinism and leucism are two possible explanations. However, they are different biological conditions.

Albinism is associated with a genetic inability to produce normal melanin. It can affect pigmentation in the eyes as well as the body.

Leucism involves reduced pigmentation caused by abnormalities involving pigment cells. Depending on the form, animals with leucism can retain normally pigmented eyes.

The Hokkaido whales appeared to have dark eyes, which has led several reports to suggest that leucism may explain their appearance.

But dark eyes alone do not provide enough evidence to diagnose leucism.

A peer-reviewed study published in Mammal Study documented two white killer whales observed in the Nemuro Strait off Hokkaido in 2019. The researchers specifically noted that they could not determine whether those animals were albino or leucistic from the available observations.

For that reason, the most scientifically responsible description of the 2024 animals is white or unusually pale killer whales, rather than definitively calling them albino or leucistic.

White Orcas Had Been Recorded in Hokkaido Before

The 2024 encounter was not the first documentation of unusually white killer whales in Japanese waters.

In May and July 2019, researchers documented two white killer whales in the Nemuro Strait off the Shiretoko Peninsula.

The 2020 scientific paper described one animal as a presumed mature male and the other as a female or immature male. When compared with previously reported white killer whales from around the North Pacific, neither appeared to match known individuals.

The researchers considered the two animals the first recorded white killer whales documented from Japanese coastal waters at that time.

Reports also indicate that white killer whales were observed again in the region in later years, including 2021. This makes the repeated appearance of unusually pale orcas around Hokkaido particularly interesting to researchers and wildlife observers.

Why Are White Orcas So Unusual?

Killer whales normally have a distinctive black-and-white pattern that helps make them one of the most recognizable marine mammals on Earth.

An individual whose normally dark areas appear almost completely white is therefore visually extraordinary.

However, there is currently no reliable scientific estimate for how common white killer whales are throughout the world's oceans. Because these animals are rare and wild killer whales spend much of their lives underwater, unusual individuals can easily go undocumented.

Could the Two Whales Be Related?

That remains unknown.

The fact that two unusually pale individuals were observed in the same general area raises interesting questions about their identity, age, sex, family relationships and movements.

However, photographs alone cannot establish whether the animals are genetically related or whether the same individuals were responsible for sightings in different years.

Long-term photo-identification studies could potentially help researchers determine whether individual white orcas return to the region and whether they can be recognized from distinctive markings and body characteristics.

The Importance of Careful Wildlife Documentation

Rare wildlife photographs can be valuable scientific records, especially when they capture animals that are difficult to study directly.

In this case, the availability of multiple photographs and video footage makes the encounter more useful than a single unexplained image circulating online.

At the same time, extraordinary photographs should not automatically be used to make extraordinary biological claims.

The photographs show what the whales looked like. They do not, by themselves, reveal the exact genetic mechanism responsible for their coloration.

What We Still Don't Know

• Exact cause of the coloration: The available observations do not definitively establish whether the whales are albino, leucistic, or have another pigmentation variation.
• Genetic background: There is no publicly established genetic analysis of the 2024 whales confirming the mutation responsible for their appearance.
• Relationship between individuals: It has not been established whether the two whales are related.
• Identity across years: It remains difficult to determine from public reports alone whether the same individuals appeared in different years.
• Population frequency: There is no reliable global estimate for the frequency of white killer whales in wild populations.
• Long-term effects: There is insufficient evidence to conclude that the unusual coloration gives these whales a particular survival advantage or disadvantage.

A Rare and Genuine Wildlife Encounter

The two pale killer whales photographed off Hokkaido are a genuine example of unusual coloration in a wild animal.

The encounter is particularly interesting because white killer whales had already been scientifically documented in the same general region, including the two individuals reported in 2019.

But the most important takeaway is also the simplest: we know what these whales looked like, but we do not yet know exactly why they looked that way.

That distinction matters when reporting unusual wildlife stories. A remarkable photograph can be completely authentic while some of the explanations circulating around it remain uncertain.

The Pader Fact Check

LEGITIMATE SIGHTING — WITH A SCIENTIFIC CAVEAT.

The 2024 photographs and video genuinely document unusually white or pale killer whales off Hokkaido. However, claims that definitively identify the whales as leucistic or albino go beyond what the available evidence can establish.

The most accurate description is rare white killer whales or unusually pale killer whales until further scientific evidence determines the precise cause of their coloration.

Sources

• Mammal Study — First record of white killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Nemuro Strait, eastern Hokkaido, Japan
• Snopes Fact Check — Photos show all-white orca off Japanese coast
• My Modern Met — Extremely Rare All-White Orca Captured on Film in Hokkaido
• PetaPixel — Photographer Captures Ultra-Rare White Orca Off the Coast of Japan

Photo note: The images above are retained from the original version of this article. The original post attributed the sighting to wildlife photographer Tokuyuki Hayakawa. Before monetized republication, verify the original photographer/rights-holder and obtain permission or use the appropriate licensed source.

Editorial note: The Pader separates confirmed observations from scientific interpretation. Where the cause of an animal's unusual appearance has not been scientifically established, the article uses cautious language rather than presenting a hypothesis as fact.