The following article was just published online in /Polar Biology/: DOI 10.1007/s00300-010-0871-3 Observations of a distinctive morphotype of killer whale (/Orcinus orca/), type D, from subantarctic waters R. L. Pitman, J. W. Durban, M. Greenfelder, C. Guinet, M. Jorgensen, P. A. Olson, J. Plana, P. Tixier, J. R. Towers Abstract Studies have shown that killer whale (/Orcinus orca/) communities in high latitudes regularly comprise assemblages of sympatric ‘ecotypes’—forms that differ in morphology, behavior, and prey preferences. Although they can appear superficially similar, recent genetic evidence suggests that breeding is assortative among ecotypes within individual communities, and species-level divergences are inferred in some cases. Here, we provide information on a recently recognized ‘type D’ killer whale based on photographs of a 1955 mass stranding in New Zealand and our own six at-sea sightings since 2004. It is the most distinctive-looking form of killer whale that we know of, immediately recognizable by its extremely small white eye patch. Its geographic range appears to be circumglobal in subantarctic waters between latitudes 40°S and 60°S. School sizes are relatively large (mean 17.6; range 9–35; n = 7), and although nothing is known about the type D diet, it is suspected to include fish because groups have been photographed around longline vessels where they reportedly depredate Patagonian toothfish (/Dissostichus eleginoides/). PDF available from robert.pitman@noaa.gov <mailto:robert.pitman@noaa.gov> -- ********************* Robert L. Pitman Protected Resources Division Southwest Fisheries Science Center National Marine Fisheries Service National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 8604 La Jolla Shores Drive La Jolla, California 92037 858-546-7092 phone 858-546-7003 fax robert.pitman@noaa.gov http://swfsc.noaa.gov/prd.aspx *********************