The water vole (Arvicola amphibius) is widespread throughout Eurasia. In 2020, 17 specimens were collected from the islands of the White Sea during the field expedition of the Karelian Research Centre. It was the first record of this species for White Sea island fauna since the 1950s. Among the captured voles, there were two different colour variants of the animals: almost black and reddish-brown. We tend to classify the black type of colour as melanism. This type of colouration is new for the species in the region, according to data from long-term monitoring of continental populations of small mammals. All reddish-brown samples, with the exception of one juvenile male, presented white spots on various parts of the body. The white-spotting patterns of reddish-brown colouration were also first recorded for water voles in the region. Individuals with different colouration types inhabited islands separated by about 50 kms of water.