Extremely Rare White Humpback Whale Spotted Off Australian Coast

There are only three known white humpback whales alive on the planet. One of them was spotted Monday off Australia’s Gold Coast. This incredibly rare footage from the AP shows the whale migrating from Antarctica to warmer waters in the north.

At first, viewers aboard whale-watching boats thought the albino humpback was Migaloo—the first-sighted white whale in the world. But this whale seems too small and its coloration is too light to be Australia's most famous whale.

"It's probably Migaloo Junior," White Whale Research Centre founder Oskar Peterson told Australia's AP service. First spotted in 2011, Migaloo Junior is believed to be related to the original white whale, according to a study that showed Migaloo Senior has a genetic form of albinism that is hereditary.