PEPPER PIKE, Ohio — A rare piebald deer was spotted in Pepper Pike on Monday morning.
News 5 photojournalist Mike Vielhaber spotted the deer at around midnight near the Chagrin and Lander traffic circle, where the deer was seen mingling with other deer in the area.
Around midnight I spotted this piebald deer in Pepper Pike at the Chagrin/Lander traffic circle. I read that less than 2% of deer will end up with this trait. Pretty cool. pic.twitter.com/xRcMSggS89
— Mike Vielhaber (@MVielhaber) October 26, 2020
Jamey Emmert, a spokesperson for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said the state agency gets reports from time to time about various species of wildlife with unusual fur or feather colors.
"I wouldn’t call piebald deer common by any means, but it’s not unusual for us to get a few calls every year from people inquiring about them because they saw one and was curious about it," Emmert said.
An estimated 1-2% of deer have piebaldism—a rare genetic anomaly in whitetails that includes a range of potential deformities from coat coloration to skeletal alignment, according to QDMA, a nonprofit wildlife conservation organization.
Cases of piebaldism range from mild to severe, with those who are spotted by hunters, or in this case an overnight photographer, typically living normal lives.
Since piebaldism is a recessive trait, it’s believed that both parents must carry the recessive gene for there to be the chance for a piebald fawn. It’s possible for a piebald doe to reproduce and bear normal fawns.
Heidi, a Parma resident, shared photos of a piebald deer hanging out in her backyard last year.
We have one that hangs out in our backyard in Parma from time to time. These pictures of from last year but we’ve seen it this year too. pic.twitter.com/i2LekrbUd5
— Heidihoonthego (@backwards_bic) October 26, 2020
