Ever seen a white deer?

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oldsoldier

Forager
Jan 29, 2007
239
1
53
MA
We had several around where I live last year killed by hunter. It seems that albino deer arent as rare as once thought. I think someone told me that 1 in 100 can be born that way for whitetail deer (common in my area).
 

Longstrider

Settler
Sep 6, 2005
990
12
59
South Northants
Actually, they are not as uncommon as you might be led to believe. Not common, but not too extraordinary either. Fallow deer are the most likely "White" deer that you are likely to see in Britain.
The pub name "The White Hart" gives some clue as to the fact that these animals are not exactly a one-in-a-billion occurence in nature.
Interesting to see on that clip that the white deer they have are white because of a recessive gene. It would seem that they now have so many because of the way that the white deer were protected from being shot by the former base Commander. I guess the same protection wasn't given to "normal" deer and so Man yet again interfered with Natural Selection and effectively made the recessive gene a good survival trait.
 

Hoodoo

Full Member
Nov 17, 2003
5,302
13
Michigan, USA
I saw a white deer once in Pennsylvania back in the early 70s. I was hitching and sleeping along an interstate when I woke one morning and saw one looking at me like a ghost. :)

Have you ever seen a white moose?

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Someone sent me these photos of moose in the UP of Michigan. Not sure if they are fake or not. Nowadays, it's hard to tell with digital.
 

pataviking

Member
Feb 21, 2007
17
0
57
ozarks, U S A
yes when i was 7 years old. there was a small one being chased by stray dogs it had a broken back leg. while it and the dogs were running around thry were scaring the cattle. my dad went out with a gun and put it out of its misery. my parents have picture somewhere in thier pile, i mean arcives. this was not an albino its legs fron the knees down and its head were the normal brown and it did not have pink eyes. Pat
 

jerv

Forager
Aug 28, 2005
226
1
47
sussex
there is a white fallow in my area I have seen her a few times on the farm the last being last friday when she ran right past me. she is a very very big deer and often seems to be alone.
 

saffy

Forager
Feb 2, 2007
107
0
UK
I seen several white deer together living in Wentwood forest (Monmouthshire, South Wales) about 10 years ago.
I no longer live in that area now so do not know what the population status of deer is like there these days but in the 25 years I was there we rarely ever seen deer at all unlike here in Wiltshire where they are everywhere (not seen white though).

I read the expanding population of Roe deer into Wales is very slow for some reason.
 

JonnyP

Full Member
Oct 17, 2005
3,833
29
Cornwall...
There are quite a few of them in St Leonards forest near me. When I first saw them through the trees, I thought a load of sheep had escaped......
 

dwardo

Bushcrafter through and through
Aug 30, 2006
6,456
478
46
Nr Chester
I saw my first dear close up on an island on loch Lomond late last year fantastic magical experience i will never forget.
 

moocher

Full Member
Mar 26, 2006
642
98
49
Dorset
i used to see a white fallow ,buck i think nr brockenhurst, in the new forest in the 80,s.and i think some have been photographed in the forest of dean,in recent times.
 

Dave Budd

Gold Trader
Staff member
Jan 8, 2006
2,896
321
44
Dartmoor (Devon)
www.davebudd.com
there's a white fallow deer that lives near me on Dartmoor. I've seen it a couple of times and I know of others that have too. It hangs about with about half a dozen of your standard brown ones :)

beautiful things, but they are a little obvious!
 

Bob

Forager
Sep 11, 2003
199
2
Dorset
There are a number of white Fallow that run in a herd near Powerstock here in Dorset. I saw them a couple of years back when they crossed a narrow lane in front of me - lovely sight.

More recently I've come across a white Sika buck which a local BDS bod told me is quite rare - a very surprising experience to encounter a white deer in a gloomy dark plantation!

Bob :)
 

Greg

Full Member
Jul 16, 2006
4,335
259
Pembrokeshire
The first time I went up onto the Preseli's (Hills in Pembrokeshire!), it was really misty, I was plodding along on a nav exercise with my army mates when I saw what I thought was a whole herd of white deer, but they turned out to be white wild ponies!!:lmao:

But didn't I feel the bottom digging for my camera in front of my whole Troop especially when I said at the top of my voice "F*****G hell look at all those B****y whiter deer!"
:lmao: :eek: :lmao:
 

fred gordon

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Mar 8, 2006
2,099
19
78
Aberdeenshire
I've seen several white Red deer (does that make sense?) over the years. There are also some very interesting Celtic legends about them, their mystical properties, and the good luck that attends anyone lucky enough to catch one. :)
 

pothunter

Settler
Jun 6, 2006
510
4
Wyre Forest Worcestershire
White deer can be a problem as they are easily seen by poachers who don't shoot or course them but take other animals from the group, leaving the white deer as a marker.

It was once common practice for white deer to be shot out of hand for the protection of the other beasts.

With the increased deer numbers it’s not surprising that more are being seen.

White fallow as has been mentioned earlier are quite common, but I've never seen a white roe.

Like the picture of the white moose.
 

leon-1

Full Member
Dave Budd said:
there's a white fallow deer that lives near me on Dartmoor. I've seen it a couple of times and I know of others that have too. It hangs about with about half a dozen of your standard brown ones :)

beautiful things, but they are a little obvious!

Dave, they used to be quite common in the herds around Powderham Castle. As a kid coming down to visit family it was always a sign I was home to see a white hart from the train in the grounds of Powderham.
 

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