Breath taking moment ‘fairy-tale like’ white deer poses majestically as it makes a rare appearance in London park
- Photographer Mike Ellis, 46, spotted the deer roaming Bushy Park in London earlier this month
- The photographer described seeing the deer as ‘magical’ and said they were ‘certainly a rarity’
- But the British Deer Society told MailOnline the deer was not a ‘true albino’ as their eyes are ‘a dark colour’
This is the magical moment a rare white buck was spotted roaming a London park.
The enchanting fallow deer was spotted in Bushy Park this month by photographer, Max Ellis.
The 46-year-old, who has been visiting the park for the past 15 years to photograph the deer, said it was unusual to see a white buck.
He said: ‘I think the white deer are quite magical. Almost like fairytale creatures. They’re certainly a rarity.’
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Max Ellis was lucky enough to see more than one white deer in the park (two are pictured here). A buck is a male deer and is distinctive because of its antlers
Bushy Park is famed for its deer – with around 320 in the area – but it’s not often you would see a white deer grazing on the land
Although the park is famed for its deer, it’s not often you would see a white deer grazing on the land.
Bushy Park is said to contain around 320 deer – both red and fallow. The deer are allowed to roam freely throughout the park, as they did in the time of Henry VIII.
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It is thought the white appearance is caused by leucism – partial loss of pigmentation caused by a reduction in multiple types of pigment, not just melanin.
A small number of deer are albinos and are identifiable because of their pink eyes.
The British Deer Society confirmed the deer in the park was a fallow deer buck but played down the rarity of coming across one.
The British Deer Society confirmed the deer (pictured) was a fallow deer buck but said it was not that unusual to see a white one in a park. It is more unusual in the wild
White fallow (pictured) are not true albinos as their eyes are a dark normal colour rather than pink or red
A spokesman said: ‘The white deer is quite normal as this is recognised colour variety for this species although they are not seen as often in the wild as the other three colour types, the common, menil and black.
‘They are, however, popular in deer parks where they are more commonly seen.’
The spokesman also addressed whether the deer was albino or if its appearance was caused by leucism.
He said: ‘White fallow are not true albinos as their eyes are a dark normal colour rather than pink or red.
‘For all of the other deer species found in Britain, white animals are very unusual although they do occur on rare occasions.’
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