It's a recessive gene that causes it. The gene has to be passed from both parents and the dominant gene for color to be otherwise absent. It is the opposite coloration from the melanastic condition, which is a completely black deer. To me, the melanastic deer are prettier, but also rarer than, albinos, and they are legal to shoot.What a beautiful animal. Ok, I'll ask....how/what makes an albino buck? If you say a buck and a doe, we can't be friends
Is it just a genetic thing that happens?
I encountered one of the melanistic (black) deer three separate times in the Fall Branch area of Greene County and Washington County during the 2012 and 2013 deer seasons. The last time I saw it in 2013, it had a better than average 10-point rack. I really wanted to put that buck on my wall, but I never could get a clear shot at it. Never heard of anyone else shooting it, but we had a minor EHD outbreak the following year and I wonder if it succumbed to EHD. We occasionally see a piebald but that's the only black one I've ever known in our local area.
It's 1,000% albino. It was hit a couple miles from my house. Been watching it for years.
Very fitting to come home to the community where he spent much of his time, and was enjoyed by all whom saw him.
