Ask The Biologist

Melanistic Deer

Melanistic Deer

By Bob Humphrey

QUESTION: I shot a melanistic 9-point buck on Nov.15, 2000. He dressed out at 174 pounds. Does anybody track or keep records of such rare animals? — Daniel S.

ANSWER: We get a lot of questions and comments about odd deer, particularly color variations. Even in “normal” deer, pelage (fur color) can be highly variable, ranging from slate gray to reddish brown. Deer in the southwest tend to be paler and more gray, while those in the north are often darker brown. However, individuals within the same area can show similar variations. Hair color also varies with season, being reddish brown in summer and grayer in winter.

Things get more interesting with extreme examples like albinism and melanism. Both are genetic mutations. True albino deer lack pigment and have white hair, white or yellow hooves and pink eyes. Melanistic deer have excess pigment resulting in black (actually dark brown) hair. In between are piebalds, which have varying amounts of white, but have normally dark hooves and eyes.

Melanistic DeerTo my knowledge there is no record keeping organization for such oddities. You can be satisfied in knowing yours is indeed a rare trophy, much less common than a piebald or even an albino deer.

– Photos Courtesy of Matt Kutscher and Adam Marmolejo

Copyright 2024 by Buckmasters, Ltd.

Copyright 2020 by Buckmasters, Ltd