Hunter Shoots an Albino Deer and Angers Locals, Wisconsin

6 ReDrop Report

So the story goes, an out-of-town hunter angered locals in Wisconsin last weekend after he shot this albino buck near Leland, Wis. Albino and all-white deer are protected species in Wisconsin but they're still fair game in Chronic Wasting Disease Management Zones. He was hunting in Sauk County, which is a designated region for CWD management. The kill was legal but a lot of the local hunters and residents say the hunter broke an informal agreement among townspeople to protect Leland's white deer. The area is said to have eight albino and all-white deer, and many locals son't want them shot. Now the locals are demanding the Wisconsin DNR step up its game and improve protection for these unusual whitetails.

I wouldn't want to tick off the residents but this buck has a great rack. What do you think? Should they be protected or hunted?

Comments

Nick Melnyk

Considering they are protected other than the specific zone it was harvested i would not agree with it being shot. Maybe it is a legal kill, but out of the respect for the community and the rare-ness of the deer, I would let it pass. I saw a moose this past season with albino legs and I did not think of harvesting it, I was most concerned on getting pictures and watching it knowing I probably will not see one again.

Mike Hawbaker

Protected! Absolute...no question about it. These are rare animals and they should get a pass. I am a life long hunter and love the whitetail pursuit, but I don't agree with this guys decision to take this deer.

Sara Prideaux

Hmm...I think I would lean more towards he should have considered it still protected, and left it alone.

Amy Simmons

I don't think I would be able to.

justin andrew

life long hunter an if i ever seen an albino deer no matter the size it could be the biggest in the world i would not have taken such a rare deer out.......but i do not think he should be in trouble if it is a legal kill

Jeff Monger

i wish we could take them here in TN its still just a deer one of a lifetime

Joshua Henn

i think it should be the hunters decision. it was a legal kill and a deer of a lifetime, being both albino and having a huge rack. i think about it this way. many bucks dont grow to be more than lets say 150inchs. would you shoot anything over that? even though they are pretty rare? (at least where i hunt) heck no i would shoot it. if this buck was albino or not, i would take it. if i hunted in the widwest where there are lots of huge deer, i would pass him. all in all it goes down to hunter choice and his thoughts on the issue.

Ben Clark

I would have taken it. i hunt for meat and dont care what color it is food is food. however if its protected in your area dont shoot it but this guy got it fair and square telling him he is in trouble would be like telling the guy who owns land and hunts next to preserve that he is in trouble for every deer he kills. if its protected everywere else then the odds of getting a white deer are slim to none.

Brandon Frazier

Surprised he made it as long as he did, its a legal kill and legal animal!!!! People need to get off there high horses and let us hunters the hunt legal take whatever we see fit as long as its legal. Great kill man, they are legal game in Oklahoma as well and I have killed 2 piebalds thru the years!!!!!

Brandon Frazier

People like that gripe all the time about how deer destroy the gardens and flowers, but when it comes time to kill them, they are against it!!!! Conceded and 2 faced is what they are, keep on keepin on brother, no complaints here!!

David Sands

This reminds me of hunting in Northwern Maine 7 years ago. I had a beautifull 6 pt. Albino buck 20 yards in front of me, I thought he was too unique to harvest and so he got a free pass from me. That nite we went to dinner at the only rest. in 100 miles and were asked if we had seen anything, when I replied that I had seen the Albino, a GUY FROM AWAY said did you get him ? I said no, did'nt even try - GUY say I would have wasted him!!! My buddy said politely -"You must be from ----------- " Guy says how did you know ? Buddy said oh just a guess. So NO we do not take Albino Whitetails !

alexander nagel

they should be protected. there awesome i would love to see one , but not for shooting it. what a pretty animal!

JERRY HARTON

iv seen albinos in the wild befor just never while i was hunting !

Joe Gagznos

well for ya all that say they would have shot it.. thats y ppl have suck a hard time finding ppl to let them hunt cause ya dont listen to was ppl around the area and all have to say and that is how hunters get a bad name

Joshua Henn

alexander. so you think if an animal is pretty you dont shoot it? one of the reasons i hunt is to be able to watch deer in their natural habitat. they are awesome to watch, and yes i would call deer pretty animals. lots of animals are. mountain lions and wolves are majestic, deer are pretty, etc. so that should be an excuse to not kill them? whatevs it is an opinion a hunter should make on his/her own and not something the state should regulate. albinos are not part of there own species. they are still a deer, except while in the making the albino genes expressed themselves, something that happens ecery once and a while. government needs to step in when the population of a SPECIES is down, not when the color of species is rare.

Josh Jorstad

yea he's white but not even a true albino he has brown eyes wich should be red and the top of his head is brown and his nose should be a reddish pink color this is a piebold buck he is just primarily white! But I still would have passed cause its bad luck, so iv heard

Joshua Henn

Joe, the person was from out of town and probly had no idea that the residents didnt want the deer shot, or this whole thing could have gone very differently. and some people will be jerks and not care what other people say and think and make a bad name for them and their organizations. example: the government. i do agree though if he knew the people didnt want the deer shot and shot it anyway that is wrong. im not making excuses fot bad hunters im just saying these issues will pop up every once and awhile. and what i meant when i said i would have shot it, is that if it where on my property in north ga. where the deer dont get to big.

Chris Johnson

Bottom line... If you are hunting within the law for legal game then it is no ones decision but your own. I would not pass up the opportunity for meat on my table (or, since we are being honest, a buck like that) because of another person's beliefs. While they are rare, It is only a genetic anomaly or lack of melanin that made these deer this way. The rarity of these deer might make the trophy much more special for someone and they shouldn't be jeered for it or looked down on.

Eric Rogers

I'd put it on him.

Nate Uhlenbrock

Hay it is fair game so I would of shot it, by the way nice buck.

Kenny Straight

Seen as how most albino's do not live very long i the wild I would say if this one lived for the 3 1/2 to 4yrs that it LOOKS like he did AND the deer was "Harvested" legally then it is NO QUESTION....Personally I WOULD LOVE to hang this...(check that) full body mount this MAGNIFICENT Monarch in my den...

Jay Dockray

its not a albino does not have pink nose or toes so it is a pie bald damn people its a deer kill um all

Jeff Bagley

I respect everyone decision, but formal or informal agreement I would have given him a pass.

TJ Carroll

its not albino the head is brown and the nose is black its pie bald. personally i would have taken it its a great deer and the color thing is just a genetic mistake. in my area the game warden actually told us if we saw any to kill them to get the "bad" gene out of the system.

Daniel Bailey

if these white and albino deer are allowed to pass on their genes and make more white deer then those white deer will not have the natural camo that helps them to hide and stay alive which means predators will be able to find them easier as well as humans hunting them. If people do not want them shot then they should tell the hunters on their land to not shoot any white ones. This guy was from out of town and may have not known about the townspeoples agreement.

Patrick Snell

I agree with the fact of respecting the townspeople's request to protect them, but if they are not harvested at old age, they will die anyway...? Why let them suffer death by coyote or old age? There should be an age limit on the protection order.

Renee' Dobson

Im with joshua henn and ben clark on this. It is a rare and beautiful animal but food is food no matter the color. Im a hunter myself and if i hunted out of state i would expect to be told or asked not to shoot them. if i wasnt and its leagal, then its fair game and id drop it for the meat and the color and rack would just be a bonus for an amazing mount.

Audra Goss

I would not have shot it. Protected zone or not, deer do migrate over time. It is possible that this buck originated from a protected zone and wound up in the CWD territory. Out of respect for the beauty and rarity of the animal and the state legislation concerning their protection, I would have left it alone.

Adam Folk

It was 100% legal. No different than any other deer. Albino deer are more prone to health problem. Congrats to the hunter!!! The townspeople need to suck it up and accept the fact that it is a legal game animal.

Sandy Reed

I just wonder if a community got together because they were seeing a 200 inch buck and they had the thought that this deer should be spared because the antler size was rare.. should we not shoot this legal animal? this piebald buck is a beautiful animal and I would be proud to have LEGALLY harvested him, put meat in the freezer and a new addition to the wall.

Dan Pieper

A deer that is albino has bad genetics so kill it. Its legal so why does it matter even? Id do a full mount on that thing!!! Congrats!!

RonnieandLiz Bowers

I understand the locals want them protected, but if the deer wander out of the safe zone, what can anyone do. It's a very impressive buck. In my area locals buy them raise them and release them, so they are fair game. I almost got one myself a few years ago. I don't believe in any old wives tales about white deer or elk or anything else. They're animals with a recessive genetic mutation, that's all it is.

Troy Cuppy

I think since it was a legal kill, there should be no punishment other than never allowing him to hunt that region again. As far as the albino deer taking, I think that as long as the buck taken is a MATURE dominant buck at least 41/2 or older, you should be able to take them. But if you shoot one and it ISN'T at least that old, that you are subject to penalties and punishment. Just my take on it...

nathan elliott

well he shot it i think that he should spend the money to mount the full body but as far as if he should have or not he was legal so let it be it is a once in a life time deer period

Alex Mrotek

An albino is classified as a 100% pure color. The head of the deer has brown on it... thus not an albino. There is no law breaking action here.

Thomas Locke

To be honest seeing that once in a lifetime would be sweet but not taking it i think would be a bad idea its mature an if it were brown no one would think twice on takin the shot i think that would look great on my wall an help fill my freezer up theres eight there i only seen a pibald once i cant say anything but congrats to the out of towner

Eric Edwards

congrats man thats a nice one... i would have shot it too... too bad people are upset over a deer they r just jelous they didnt get to see it

Joshua Henn

Ok y'all, is see lots of people saying that it has "bad" genetics. WRONG! EVERY DEER HAS THE CAPABILITY TO BE A PIEBALD/ALBINO!! hahaha i just went through this section in biology so i should know. when the sperm fertilizes the ovum, genes come from the father to the mother and mix. now, some genes are dominant, some are not. dominant genes are the GENES THAT ARE EXPRESSED. like skin color, sex, curly or straight hair, drown or blue eyes, etc. so this deer's gene of being "piebald' (which he is because his eyes and nose are not pink) have been expressed, which happens rarely usuallt because something happened during pregnancy. so if this deer breeds a doe, it will probly be the same as every other deer out there. i hope that made since if not let me know and i will expand on the subject =)

TJ Carroll

Albinism is a rare genetic anomaly that can cause major health problems, as well as being more acceptable to being killed by predators due to a lack of camouflage. this is a genetic trait, an allele on the chromosomes that is usually recessive but has become dominant through the mating of the parents. this allele should be removed from the gene pool

Jeremy Albert

Nice deer man, hunted a very long time and would shoot this one without any hesitation.... If this thing was a unicorn I would shoot it as the meat would taste the same.... If the townies want people to leave their white deer alone they best catch them and take them to a game reserve.
HUNT ON!

Adam Folk

Joshua, the gene that controls albinism is genetically linked to other alleles. These other alleles that are linked to the albinism gene are what cause the major health problems. You can say you went through the biology section but i can say i'm in a college genetics course so i should know. Albinism is also usually a sign of inbreeding, because of how rare the carrier gene is. Inbreeding increases the chance of homozygosity of recessive alleles. So don't try to convince people that Albino deer are not inferior genetically because they are.

Jesse Artrip

thank the lord a few people realize he isnt albino, and they are rare, but they arent a species if you kill one another will take its place so long as whitetails exist so why not shoot it? a 300 inch whitetail is just as rare and every person who hunts would shoot that deer in a heartbeat, so why not kill a big white, albino, piebald, melanistic whatever a person wants to kill, they are all rare but as long as there are whitetails there will be different colored ones

Steven Sanmarco

Food on the table is food on the table, great kill. By the way there are tons of them in Romulus, NY on the old military base.

David Grant

I've been told if you see horns, smoke 'em. but i've also been told if you shoot an albino, you wont shoot another deer in your life. Ever. so, i'd let him walk. only shots i'd take would be with a NIkon or an iPhone

Joshua Henn

i stand corrected. did i mention i only got an 85 on the genetics test.....hahaha anyway this deer still isnt albino, it is piebald. no pink nose or eyes, and the top of his head is brown. i dont know if it is still if=nferior or not, cause this buck looks healthy, big body and huge horns.

steve gibson

in addition to monster bucks there are 3 others on my hit list and i would shoot without hesitation they are a pieball, albino, and a black all are pretty and rare where i am but if i see one its dead as long as its legal. So yes i would have shot.

Ronnie Sanders

I've seen 2 true albinos here in colorado outta season of course but if i'd shoot one even a piebald. Yes its rare and some ppl want to save them but they've got bad genes so need to manage them. Plus i'd do a LIFESIZE mount done by myself since i do taxidermy and i'd have braggin right here in CO. Congrats on the harrvest. What an amazing buck.

Hunter Shoots an Albino Deer and Angers Locals

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