A unicorn in the garden: The case of the really, really white White-Tailed deer

Something was afoot near Gig Harbor. The young buck’s eye-catching white spots make him a unicorn among common brown deer in the area. He crept his way through Lisa Ellis’ garden near the Tacoma Narrows airport in early June, disappearing into the woods as quietly as he came.

At first, she thought the deer simply had unusual markings and sent a few photos to her adult daughters.

“They immediately wrote back to say that it was a piebald and extremely rare!” Ellis recounts.

Piebaldism is a genetic abnormality that causes a lack of pigmentation in areas around the body. Documented cases have occurred in other animal species, including horses, dogs, and mice. Humans have also seen cases of piebalding, though it shouldn’t be confused with other conditions like albinism.

Although both albinism and piebalding are caused by a recessive gene mutation, albino deer have a pink nose, eyes, and hooves with no brown fur present. Piebald deer only have varying amounts of white fur. As a recessive trait, both parents must carry the piebald gene to pass it onto their fawn.

Piebaldism affects less than 2% of white-tailed deer and is caused by the absence of melanocyte cells in certain areas. Melanocytes produce melanin, the pigment responsible for hair, eye, and skin color. When these cells aren’t present, patches of skin and hair are lighter than normal. The word “piebald” is related to the “pie” portion of “magpie” or “pied piper.” It’s intended to mean “mixed up.” The magpie has distinctive black and white feathers.

The significance of these distinctive deer is relayed in Native American and Celtic stories; simultaneously a sign of prophecy and cause of bad luck if hunted. Relatedly, hunters have an ongoing discussion about whether the rarity of “white white-tailed deer” should exclude them from harvest. Tennessee, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa don’t allow harvest of any white deer (albino nor piebald). Until recently, Minnesota and Michigan also had similar laws, as did Golden Valley County in Montana.

Further genetic mutations, along with the stark white patches, can make it even more difficult for these deer to survive into adulthood. In many cases, piebaldism can cause other issues for the animal, such as arching in the spine, internal organ deformities, bowing in the nose or a shortened jaw. Occasionally, piebald fawns are rejected by their mothers due to their patterned fur. Their coloration also makes it difficult to avoid predators, since it defeats their usual brown camouflage.

The fact that the young buck spotted in Ellis’ garden has survived against all odds is remarkable. And while this particular deer hasn’t visited her backyard since, residents in the area may want to keep a look out for the rare buck walking through.

This story was originally published June 30, 2021 at 8:20 AM.