On a very early morning in Michigan, an animal lover witnessed a magical moment.
Ramez Khuran was leaving for work on the morning of June 18, when he noticed a striking white creature standing at the edge of a nearby apartment complex.
What appeared to be a completely white deer walked by Khuran’s car around 4.45am, while he was running ten minutes late for work in Farmington Hills, Michigan.
The brief window of tardiness subjected Khuran to a rare, practically magical occurrence.
‘Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a white deer standing at the entrance of an apartment complex,’ he told MLive.
‘I passed it and I said to myself, “is that what I thought it was?”‘
He told Fox2 Detroit that he’d seen deer all the time and they were relatively common in his area, but he’d never seen anything like this, and just had to capture it on camera.
‘I see a lot of deer in my neighborhood. In my backyard I get deer all the time, but I’ve never seen a white deer like that, an albino one with red eyes.’
Ramez Khuran witnessed a completely white deer cross near his car the morning of June 18
Albino deer suffer from a disease that makes it impossible for them to produce melanin, which gives color to the eyes, skin and fur.
A disorder called piebald also causes underproduced melanin in the fur, although many deer with this condition also have brown patches as well as white ones.
The Deer Association reported that animals born with these genetic conditions can also experience some deformities, making seeing white adult deer in the wild all the more rare. Some deer that lack pigment also have crooked legs, hooves, or spines.
Others may have a shortened face or dwarfism. Albino deer often have poor eyesight, making it difficult for them to survive in the wild.
Deer born with Albinism are about 1 in 20,000 to 30,000. They have purely white fur, pink noses, light hooves and pale blue eyes.
As an amateur wildlife photographer, Khuran found the moment unforgettable
As an amateur wildlife photographer, Khuran found the moment unforgettable. ‘I was thrilled to see it,’ he said.
‘I take pics and videos of deer and other wildlife all the time. It has become a bit of a hobby for me. To capture something this rare and beautiful was an absolute privilege.’
In some states, including Minnesota, Tennessee, Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin protect these rare deer from hunters, according to Mossy Oak. Unfortunately, Michigan has no such restrictions.
‘Michigan does not protect fully white deer. We treat these deer as any other deer and consider them eligible game,’ Representative for Michigan’s department of natural resources, Chad Stewart said.
This makes Khuran’s sighting all the more precious.
‘I was thrilled,’ he said, ‘I was thrilled to see it. It was worth it to leave a little later that day.’
