white tiger

A white tiger is, scientifically speaking, a tiger with a genetic mutation, so it has the same scientific name as other tigers, Panthera tigris.
A Bengal white tiger is known as Panthera tigris tigris, while a Siberian white tiger is known as Panthera tigris altaica.

White tigers are believed to be extinct in the wild—the last known wild white tiger was killed in 1958.

However, if they weren’t extinct in the wild, the white Bengal tiger would have the same habitat as regular Bengal tigers: the forests and wetlands of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal. The Siberian white tiger would similarly be found with other Siberian tigers, in far-eastern Russia and northeastern China.

White tigers live exclusively in captivity now, in zoos, circuses, rescue sanctuaries, and private residences. Around the world, there are an estimated 200 white tigers in captivity, half of which live in India.