WSU is home to a population of white tail deer, including a deer with a piebald pattern on it.
The piebald pattern on an animal is caused by a genetic defect, and it causes the animal to have white patches all over its body.
Thomas Rooney, ecologist and a professor at WSU who has studied deer for over 20 years, said that the piebald-patterned deer it truly is a sight to see.
“A deer with the piebald pattern is actually rarer than a deer being albino,” he said. “I’ve seen multiple albino deer in my life, but in my twenty years of studying deer, the only piebald deer I’ve ever seen is here at Wright State.”
According to Rooney, the deer has been on campus for a few years, and even suggested the possibility of having more than one.
“We have had a piebald deer on campus for about three years now,” he said. “I’m not sure if it’s the same deer or a different one, but it is possible that we have more than one piebald deer on campus. Once that piebald gene is in the population, it can stay in the population with the right parents.”
Zach Thacker, a WSU student, stumbled upon the abnormal looking deer on the trails near the Rockafield cemetery, and he didn’t know what to think of it.
“I don’t know much about deer, so I thought it was albino or something,” he said. “It wasn’t until I got home and researched it a little more that I realized what I saw. It was pretty cool to see.”
Seeing this animal is something that some people never get to do in their lifetime, and the unique deer has become a must see in the Dayton area.
