Piebald deer
 

There appears to be a set of doe twins from last year that has been hanging around my driveway and one is piebald, it is mostly brown but looks to have white dots on the neck area and possibly the side. I've only saw one other piebald deer, it was over by the Wi Rapids area about 10 years ago, it was beautiful with a pattern like a Holstein. I've seen maybe half a dozen Albinos over the years, 3 in one group, they are illegal to shoot here. Anyway i planted the food plot and hopefully i'll get a pic of it on the trail cam eventually. Anyone else ever see or shoot a Piebald deer?

Saw a bunch of them over the years in Pa. There seems to be an uncommon amount of that gene in that part of the country. Saw a few Albies too though only like 3 or 4 over 20+ years. They used to be illegal to take there too. I'd guess they still are. Can't for the life of me figure out why they would make it illegal to shoot a whitetail over a mutation though. Makes no sense to me whatsoever. Still the same animal, same everything except a split or misfire in a chromosome.

Yep, passing a law to protect the mutants is flat out silly. There are more white deer born than grow to maturity because they stick out like a sore thumb to predators.

[img=http://s29.postimg.org/on9rdm643/piebald2.jpg] There's a natural mineral rock thats out there, as we can't bait till fall here, we can plant plots. Anyway here's a pic of her, i saw them in the driveway and the pic is a poor representation of her. She is pregnant, her sister isn't, also there is a few small white spots on her twin also. I think it's cool as none of the neighbors have ever saw a piebald around here either. You can shoot piebald deer in WI, i thought you could in most states?

You can in MOST states. Pa has some backwards regulations when it comes to hunting. Albi's are off limits in most states. The way I read the regs in Pa was that they feel the Piebald and Albi's were "too easy of a target to spot therefor they don't have the same chance of evasion as a regularly colored whitetail". I guess they have a point but it still dumbfounds me that a simple color mutation on an animal makes it off limits. Color phase doesn't matter on Black Bear in Pa. And you can't tell me that a cinnamon/blonde Bear doesn't stand out like a sore thumb! Oh well, in the famous words of Forest Gump, "Stupid is as stupid does"

I have no idea where you got the info that albinos and piebalds were off limits in PA but they are not off limits and never have been. There are some states that don't allow them to be shot, PA isn't one of them. Now about those other backward regulations?

They most certainly are Oldtimer, or at least they were the last time I deer hunted Pa in 2012. You may want to check on that because a Game Commission Officer is the one that let me know they were off limits. Could be he misinformed me but I can't imagine why he would have. He flat out said that piebald and albies were off limits. And I read into why from his statements.

As to the other "backward regs", No Sunday hunting, manually operated firearms only, I think they finally caught up with the times and allow crossbow in regular archery now but not sure, and not to mention the totally inept DMP.

Sorry, I do not believe any game commission officer ever told you piebalds and or albinos are protected in PA. Believe me, they were not protected before 2012, nor in 2012 nor after 2012. Cite the regulation or law that protects them. I have no idea what the DMP is, but Sunday hunting and semiauto rifles and handguns is a matter for the legislature, not the game agency, in fact the PGC publically supported Sunday hunting several years ago, the legislature refused to do it because the response from the public was that they didn;t want it. Legislators rarely pass laws that can get them unelected next time around. As far as stupid is as stupid does, you may want to check around and see how many states are doing things that were developed in wildlife management in PA before you make inane statements such as that. Here is a phone number for the PGC SE Regional office, call them and ask if piebalds are protected and then post what you are told. 610-926-3136.

Had a buddy of mine take a piebald doe in VA on one of the Navy bases a few years ago. he took it with a crossbow. The skin is tanned out and he draped it over a railing in his house. I have to admit it looks pretty cool. I'd pop a piebald in a heartbeat if I saw one during the season and I had a tag in my pocket.

No reason not to. From USA Today in 2013,"They are illegal to kill in several states, including Illinois; Iowa; portions of Montana; Tennessee; and Wisconsin, except in areas where chronic wasting disease is a problem. Michigan prohibited it until late 2008. Other states don't have the restrictions, saying that albinos are inferior genetic stock". Since this was written, Wisconsis has gone back to not allowing white deer to be taken even in the CWD zones. I couldn't find anything regarding protection of piebald deer in any states but that doesn't mean there aren't any.

Again, you can shoot piebald deer in WI, i thought you could in most states?

Stay on tract people, this mama piebald is beautiful, i hope she has a healthy fawn! We neighbors are agreeing to let her go & grow! Hope she has a buck fawn...

You do know she will have to breed with a buck that also has a gene for the piebald color in order for her to have a piebald buck. Researchers say many piebalds die because they have things wrong with them internally.

She is already bred and will give birth most likely on my property, it happens every year.

gjersy, I omitted the word albino in the list of states I posted, Wisconsin prohibits the killing of Albinos. I don't know any state that doesn't allow piebalds to be hunted and killed and I searched for them.

The deer in our area live, eat, mate, year after year, it's nice for us neighbors to see a piebald once in 49 years, nature is awesome.

I have seen quite a few in my time. This whole goat rope of where you cannot kill piebalds and albinos started when super hunt54 claimed you cannot kill them in PA which is utter nonsense.

Ok i hear u oldtimer, i just wanted to post what i thought was a neat thread about a piebald mama deer on my property.

It is a good thread.

couple of mine
RR

they encourage us to shoot them here, there is one deer in like 67,000 that carries the gene that may or may not affect their offspring if the mate with another one deer in 67,000 that carries the gene, so 2 deer out of 134,000 mate, if that happens its time for population control.
RR

Nice deer! Did you tan the hide?

yup, but they are now starting to yellow and the hair breaking off
RR

Sorry to hear that Ridge runner. Well i hope this beautiful piebald doe has a buck fawn and he lives at least 4.5 years.