The Whiteout Gene
Text and Images by Anthony Caponetto
Early graphic of two siblings exhibiting the Whiteout gene. Circa 2012-2013 Season
The geckos in the graphic are nearly identical, though not the same age, and they have what I coined Whiteout lateral markings - and "Extreme Whiteout" (the homozygous version). This terminology didn't catch on - I quit using it as soon as I heard the term Whitewall, which is so much cooler and works great with Whiteout. Whitewall was too perfect.
The gecko on the right is a homozygous carrier of the gene, giving it Whitewall(ish) laterals, and the one on the left is a visual heterozygous (or "het") gene carrier. The homozygous version of Whiteout on the right doesn't have ultra flat "Whitewalls" because it lacks the gene for lateral striping. In recent years, we've combined Whiteout with Porthole laterals to get giant white bubbles.
Whiteout vs Whitewall
Whiteout is what I originally named the gene because the lateral markings look like they were painted on with the old Whiteout brand liquid eraser. This is the gene behind what is now widely called the "Whitewall" appearance, which is a term I use to this day.
A Whitewall is basically just the homozygous version of the Whiteout, where the solid white lateral markings span the sides from limb to limb and reach up fairly high on the sides. I believe the Whitewall markings have this appearance because of Whiteout being present in two gene copies and how it combines with lateral striping. I believe there's likely a separate gene controlling whether lateral markings are striped, portholes or whatever else (or non-existent).
Genetically speaking, you can think of a Whitewall a homozygous Whiteout (or "Super Whiteout"), though you won't see either of those terms used in the hobby (at least not yet).
Whiteout Genetics
Whiteout is an incomplete dominant genetic mutation. Below are genetic odds for each type of pairing.
Whiteout x Whiteout
Genetic Odds = 1/4 Homozygous Whiteout, 1/4 Non-Whiteout, and 1/2 Whiteout.
Whiteout x Non-Whiteout
Genetic Odds = 1/2 Whiteout and 1/2 non-Whiteout
Homozygous Whiteout x Heterozygous Whiteout
Genetic Odds = 1/2 Whiteout and 1/2 non-Whiteout
Homozygous Whiteout x Non-Whiteout
Produces 100% Whiteout Offspring
Homozygous Whiteout x Homozygous Whiteout
Produces All Homozygous Whiteout Offspring
Whiteout Gene Combos & Descriptions
Below are some images of various geckos where the Whiteout gene is present, along with a brief description of what you're looking at. As with most genes, all of the other pattern elements present in a gecko, such as Pinstripe, Harlequin, Tiger and Portholes vs. Lateral Striping, can all have an impact on Whiteout/Whitewall markings.
Above is a C2/Citrus line Yellow & Cream Super Soft Scale with Whitewall Laterals.
ATangerine x Lavender/Black Pinstripe with some very attractive Whiteout (heterozygous) markings. Note that the Whiteout lateral markings have taken on a pinkish-peach tone, due to the presence of Tangerine pigment.
This is a heavily Tangerine-pigmented Super Soft Scale with some excellent Whitewall lateral markings.
Great example of aberrantly patterned Whiteout markings on a Tangerine x Lavender Line Tri-Color
This gecko is a good example of one that could be a really nice Whiteout, or it could be a lower expression Whitewall - I believe this is actually a Whitewall, where the Harlequin markings are interfering with the height.
C2 Citrus line Super Soft Scale with Whitewall markings and Tangerine pigment. This gecko is also a visual heterozygous Empty Back, evident by the yellow base color showing through the dorsal.
Whitewall laterals on a Tangerine x Citrus line Soft Scale + Het Empty Back
This is the gecko with aberrant Whitewall laterals- same gecko pictured at the top of the page. The pattern doesn't cut straight across, so some terminology nerds on social media might argue it's not a Whitewall.
Something really weird/rare with some very unusual Whitewall markings. I wouldn't have necessarily known these were the same thing if I hadn't produced the gecko myself!
Great looking Tri-Color with Whiteout/Whitewall Laterals
Whitewall laterals on a Pink-Red Super Soft Scale. This gecko has no Lilly White present, yet note the ultra wide creamy fringe on her hind legs. This widening of the fringe markings seems to be part of the Whiteout/Whitewall gene, essentially doing the same thing it does to white markings on the sides
Phantom x Whiteout Combos
It's still unclear why, but Phantoms with a yellow or orange base color, which includes all my various C2, Citrus and Tangerine line crosses, will sometimes severely mute Whiteout lateral markings, while other times letting it shine through in all its glory. I think a lot of it has to do with the way Phantom likes to mute the white markings and also because of the light base color of the geckos contrasting with white the least of all crested gecko base colors.
C2/Citrus x Tangerine line - Phantom x Whiteout Combo
This gecko has what I believe to be heterozygous Whiteout laterals.
There seems to be another gene making the laterals jagged - you'll hear more on that later, but we have these in every color - Phantom and Non-Phantom.
This is a C2/Tangerine line Phantom Combo
This gecko has what I believe to be heterozygous Whiteout laterals.
C2/Tangerine "Strawberry" Line Phantom Combo
These are homozygous Whiteout (Whitewall) laterals.
C2/Tangerine "Strawberry" Line Phantom Combo
These are homozygous Whitewall Laterals
Porthole x Homozygous Whiteout
As you read above, I've been big on Phantom combos. While working on that, we ended up figuring out that Whiteout will go bonkers with those little white specks on the sides of a LOT of geckos - what people have long referred to as portholes. The homozygous Whiteout version shown below is incredible, but these are still relatively rare and will only be available in limited numbers for the next couple seasons.
See the Porthole x Whiteout Laterals page for more photos and information.
Whiteout vs Lilly White
This has been a topic of debate here in my collection, and I've come to the conclusion this shouldn't be an either/or proposition (like it ever is). I love me some white on a crested gecko and both genes have their strong points.
My opinion is that both genes should have a place in most serious collections.
- The Case for Whiteout
With Lillies, I don't want to breed Lilly x Lilly (the super form is fatal), so the best I'm going to do in terms of genetic odds is about 50% Lilly Whites and 50% Non-Lillies. With Whiteout, the homozygous form is not only perfectly healthy, it's a much more extreme version of the heterozygous form and resembles a hatchling Lilly White, minus the Lilly's propensity to gain more white with age. This means we can breed homozygous Whiteouts (Whitewall, Porthole type, etc.) together and get 100% homozygous Whiteout offspring - and while they may not gain more white like a Lilly, they make higher-white Phantoms and they can have white laterals on par with the Lilly. This means the project will ultimately progress at a faster rate, especially if there's a certain color or another pattern gene that you're trying to make combos of. I've also noticed that the laterals on Homozygous Whiteout (Porthole and Whitewall types) x Phantom geckos are generally bigger and fuller than the white laterals on Lilly White x Phantoms. This is absolutely not case in non-Phantom Lilly Whites, so it seems to reason that Phantom basically devours a lot of the white patterning that the Lilly White gene brings. It does the same thing to white from the Pinstripe gene, which is why highlighted pinning on Phantoms has been such a wild goose chase (we had to add another gene - Empty Back - to help).
- The Case for Lilly White
Lilly White does things Whiteout/Whitewall cannot - the amount of white coverage seen on non-Phantom Lilly Whites is quite literally all I needed to see to know that it's a must-have gene. The gene may have some baggage (fatal homozygous form preventing you from selectively breeding Lilly x Lilly), but you don't need two copies of the Lilly gene - it only takes one gene copy to do things you can't do with any other gene.
