Hunting Washington Forum

Community => Trail Cameras => Topic started by: fishnfur on January 05, 2019, 03:40:24 PM

Title: What's up with this doe?
Post by: fishnfur on January 05, 2019, 03:40:24 PM: I found this video, one of five, from late May, 2015. I'd forgotten about how bizarre the coat of the doe appears. Looks like new and improved deer camo. Anybody ever seen any deer look like this?? (you'll probably need to go to youtube to view it large enough to see the detail). youtube.com/watch?v=6wjlK1OV97Q&feature=youtu.be

It may have been a temporary situation because I've never seen her or any other like that since.
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: lokidog on January 05, 2019, 04:31:14 PM: Kind of cool looking actually. Hope she ended up being OK.
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: Boss .300 winmag on January 05, 2019, 04:32:52 PM: Leopard doe, most fierce blacktail subspecies ever.
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: flyfishWA on January 05, 2019, 04:38:01 PM: Quote from: Boss .300 winmag on January 05, 2019, 04:32:52 PM
Leopard doe, most fierce blacktail subspecies ever.
:chuckle:
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: Axle on January 05, 2019, 04:41:27 PM: Quote from: Boss .300 winmag on January 05, 2019, 04:32:52 PM
Leopard doe, most fierce blacktail subspecies ever.

Logical explanation for sure; however, I saw the way she was picking from that tree and it leads me to believe she's a migrant worker. :chuckle: :chuckle: :chuckle:
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: fishnfur on January 05, 2019, 08:47:10 PM: :chuckle: :chuckle: :chuckle: Nice one!

I've seen a lot of weird variations in coats related to diseases and change of winter to summer coat etc. Normally, those are big splotchy changes in the coat. I don't see this type pattern (in Google/Wiki) as part of the piebald variation either. I'm wondering if it is a mutation of some sort. When I first saw the videos years ago, I thought the animal was wet, and the variation was just due to the way the coat was laying. Looking at it closer today, it appears that it had not been raining, and the patterns repeat down the neck. Very weird!
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: nwwanderer on January 06, 2019, 10:51:30 AM: Strange, keep'm coming, thanks
Title: Re: What's up with this doe?
Post by: fishnfur on January 07, 2019, 10:02:19 PM: I'm pasting the response from Eric Holman at WDFW, whom is one of the two BT guru biologists in the state. I'm sure we'll never know the real answer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H mmmmmm .. . . I’ve never seen one quite like what you’ve got here.

It’s a good photo and video.

I think my best guess is that she had hairloss syndrome during her first winter, likely losing a lot of her coat and taking on the yellowish cast that a lot of the hairloss fawns have. It’s typically worse on their flanks and neck where they can chew and scratch. Next, she likely gained condition in the warmer months and better nutritional time of March, April and May. I’m thinking that what we see here is her good healthy new summer coat coming in and covering the yellowish or absent hair areas from her tough winter with hairloss. Interesting that it appears in the striped pattern. As the hair grows out and fills in the yellowish areas she probably just looks normal.

I agree that it’s not piebald. Those usually look more white and more like at pinto than a zebra . .. . a couple of photos attached.