The Odds of Seeing an Albino Deer
BuckManager.com | Deer Coloration
Albino white-tailed deer may be neat to see, but did you know that a true albino occurs in only one of out of 100,000 births and very few fawns survive beyond the first year of life? It’s true. For an albino deer to live over seven years is extremely unusual — almost unheard of. And if you think about it, this makes sense for a lot of reasons. First, most of the whitetail’s range consist of habitat that is dominated by the colors green and brown–not white.
Within various wildlife species, animal coloration is based on the process of natural selection. In short, color mutations occur infrequently overall, but if the color variations were well-suited for the environment where they are found, then those “oddly” colored animals would survive to breed and pass on their genes. If the genes cause an animal to stick out, such as a white deer in a primarily green or brown environment, then the animal will be more noticable to predators, including humans. This results in the animal being depredated or harvested. In either case, the color abnormality does not benefit the white animal.
The albino whitetail buck seen above is a true albino. In cases of true albinism, albino deer lack pigmentation in the hair, skin, and, in the case of deer, the iris of the eyes. However, eyes can be pink or blue and the hoofs a pale gray. In some areas, albino deer are even protected by law. However, most states do not protect deer with color abnormalities.
To sum up, albinos are interesting animals, and albino white-tailed deer are no different. They are genetic phenonmenons that physically don not make sense in most cases, but could under certain environmental conditions (for example, if it snowed throughout the year). So although most of us will never see a wild albino deer, if you do, just consider the odds!
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We saw one this last week in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, in the clearing behind Chick-fil-a, just off of 55/401.
Christie | Aug 31, 2009 | Reply
Oct 14 2009, a true albino 6 point buck was harvested in Zuni, Virginia, by crossbow.
Peter Homan | Oct 17, 2009 | Reply
I saw and took a picture of an albino buck in my backyard in southwest Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was a digital picture and didn’t come out very clear, but I saw it on October 31, 2009
Carol Schulte | Nov 28, 2009 | Reply
When I was a child my father, brother, and I saw a massive white buck that crossed the road in front of us, stopped when we stopped and looked at us for about 30 seconds before bounding away in the woods. That was in Grapeview, Washington, about 1990. My younger brother, who still lives in Grapeview saw a large 6 point white buck last night. Could this be the same deer we saw 20 years ago?
Alysha Santos | Jan 10, 2010 | Reply
Alysha, although it appears the area you refer to has genes for albinism, the buck that your brother recently saw is not the same deer. The longest living, wild white-tailed deer I have heard about lived just over 15 years. Most bucks are very lucky to live to be 6+ years of age.
Buck Manager | Jan 11, 2010 | Reply
I have great photos of an albino deer. He or she is surrounded by 3 other very healthly looking normal pigmentation deer. Would anyone like to see the photos? They are amazing. I live in New Jersey.
JAYNE BEECH | Jan 23, 2010 | Reply
There are at least four albino deer living in Father Hennepin State Park, on the south shore of Lake Mille Lacs, Minnesota. They are beautiful. The white buck comes into the park during deer hunting season. Smart deer!
Roy | Feb 2, 2010 | Reply