In Photos: A Rare Albino Risso's Dolphin

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Pod life

This albino Risso's dolphin was spotted near Moss Landing in California on June 7, 2017 by Blue Ocean Whale Watch.

(Image credit: Kate Cummings/Blue Ocean Whale Watch)

This albino Risso's dolphin was spotted near Moss Landing in California on June 7, 2017 by Blue Ocean Whale Watch. The juvenile was swimming with its mom and a pod of about 50 other Risso's dolphins, including many juveniles.

[Read the full story on the albino dolphin]

Cutie pie

Before the 2017 sighting, Cummings and her crew hadn't seen this albino dolphin since Sept. 29, 2015.

(Image credit: Kate Cummings/Blue Ocean Whale Watch)

Before the 2017 sighting, Cummings and her crew hadn't seen this albino dolphin since Sept. 29, 2015.

Dorsal match

The dorsal fin of the albino dolphin's mom seen in 2015 and 2017.

(Image credit: Kate Cummings/Blue Ocean Whale Watch)

In September 2015 Blue Ocean Whale Watch spotted an albino Risso's dolphin in Monterey Bay and got pictures of it with its mother. Then, on June 7, 2017, they spotted an albino Risso's dolphin with its mother in Monterey Bay and compared the dorsal fin IDs of the mother from each sighting to confirm they were a match. "We did this to make sure it was the same albino Risso's dolphin we had spotted two years ago. Besides being all white, [an] albino dolphin has no identifying marks, whereas the mother has unique pigment and scars to help identify her."

Searching for squid

The albino dolphin is likely about 3 years old, according to Kate Cummings, co-owner of Blue Ocean Whale Watch.

(Image credit: Kate Cummings/Blue Ocean Whale Watch)

The albino dolphin is likely about 3 years old, according to Kate Cummings, co-owner of Blue Ocean Whale Watch. The group was likely a nursery pod of dolphins searching for squid, their favorite food, Cummings said.

Peculiar scars

An albino Risso's dolphin swimming with its mom.

(Image credit: Kate Cummings/Blue Ocean Whale Watch)

The bodies of Risso's dolphins are typically heavily scarred. Squid and other prey leave circular markings on the dolphins. In addition, the dolphins' teeth raking up against one another also leave scars, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Blunt forehead

Risso's dolphins are the only cetaceans with a vertical crease on the forehead.

(Image credit: Kate Cummings/Blue Ocean Whale Watch)

Risso's dolphins are the only cetaceans with a vertical crease on the forehead. In addition, they have indistinguishable beaks, giving their face a blunt shape.

[Read the full story on the albino dolphin]

Jeanna Bryner
Managing editor, Scientific American

Jeanna Bryner is managing editor of Scientific American. Previously she was editor in chief of Live Science and, prior to that, an editor at Scholastic's Science World magazine. Bryner has an English degree from Salisbury University, a master's degree in biogeochemistry and environmental sciences from the University of Maryland and a graduate science journalism degree from New York University. She has worked as a biologist in Florida, where she monitored wetlands and did field surveys for endangered species, including the gorgeous Florida Scrub Jay. She also received an ocean sciences journalism fellowship from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She is a firm believer that science is for everyone and that just about everything can be viewed through the lens of science.