What's Happening in Youngstown, OH…

Youngstown residents are catching glimpses of something special—a white deer has been seen in the Old Furnace and Bears Den areas.

In photos, the animal appears to be pure white, leading officials of Mill Creek Park to say the deer has a somewhat rare genetic condition called ‘Leucism’. This means it has less pigment in its coat than is normal, but it’s not an albino, since its eyes are not pink. In addition, it was a cream color early in the season, when an albino would have had spots on its coat. Now, as the weather gets colder, the animal’s coat is turning from white to a darker color, almost a gray.

Carol Vigorito, the Director of Recreation and Education for Mill Creek MetroParks, said officials have been catching glimpses of the animal since midsummer. At that time, it was a fawn. Although the deer doesn’t have antlers yet, there are two small nubs located on its head, leading officials to call it a ‘button buck’.

Mill Creek Park is one of several parks in the MetroParks system in and around Youngstown. Established by Volney Rogers in 1891, it is the largest of the parks, comprising 2,882 acres out of the MetroParks’ total of 4,400 acres.

Departments like this could work with a brochure printing company to create a booklet about the park and its wildlife, which would be a good educational tool for visitors.