Rare and beautiful, the white deer

that is a just a trophy for hunters

He shows no fear, merely youthful curiosity, as he gazes at the man who has entered his woodland home.

Luckily for the rare white roebuck, this visitor was trying to shoot him with a camera - not a gun.

Next time he might not be so lucky. Hunters are queueing up for the chance to stalk the yearling, which is believed to be the first white roe deer seen in a decade.

Nicknamed Pearl, he has been spotted by professional hunter Kevin Stuart three times.

Mr Stuart, 48, has the stalking rights to the 3,000-acre estate in the Scottish Lowlands where Pearl lives.

Kevin Stuart: 'I will protect him'

He and his wife Yvonne live on the estate and run a bed and breakfast for visitors.

Mr Stuart, the head of an engineering firm in Lancashire, takes stalkers on the estate just outside Kirkconnel, Dumfries, for £80 a day.

But a German hunter desperate to stalk the buck has said he is willing to pay £5,400.

Mr Stuart, however, says he will not allow anyone to hunt Pearl.

He said: 'This is quite a rare deer and we want to protect it. We would prefer people to come and shoot it with their cameras.

'At the moment it is a yearling and doesn't even have antlers. It is a beautiful animal and we are worried about poachers and people coming to shoot it.

'While it is on this estate it will be safe. I don't care how much anybody offers to kill it, I want to preserve it and make sure it has a long life.'

The white roebuck was photographed by hunter Dave Bartle last December.

Its colour is thought to be the result of a genetic mutation resulting in a condition called leucism which changes the pattern of pigmentation.

The deer's parents would have both needed the same recessive gene to produce a white fawn.

Now the magazine Sporting Rifle is planning to publish a countdown diary
to its death.

Charlie Jacoby, editor of the magazine, said: 'Selling the opportunity to shoot this deer is a very good money earner.

'American and German hunters like deer and once this deer has its antlers it will be even more attractive to them for stalking.

'A German stalker has contact us and said he will pay up to £5,400 to shoot the deer.'

Animal lovers said it would be a tragedy if Pearl was shot. Ross Minett from the charity Advocates for Animals said: 'It needs a symbolic name, Pearl, because it is rare and absolutely beautiful.

'Most people will be disgusted by the thought that the appearance of such a rare and beautiful animal has prompted a bloodthirsty race to kill it.'

Louise Roberston, of the League Against Cruel Sports, said: 'It's appalling that people get pleasure from shooting these animals anyway, but to kill a rare species that should be enjoyed by the wider public beggars belief.'

Roe deer, which are native to Britain, have been round for 10,000 years.

Only a handful of white ones have been seen since the end of the Second World.

They are normally reddish brown in the summer, turning to pale brown or grey in the winter.

They are the most common of Britain's six species of wild deer, with their numbers estimated to be more than 800,000.

White deer of other species are more frequent. White-coated fallow deer - the 'white harts' of medieval hunts - are still common.

For the pics: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1160395/Rare-beautiful-white-deer-just-trophy-hunters.html

That is cool, around here it is illegal to shot such a deer, besides there to cool to shot anyways. here a while back we had a pure black one around the farm, it was around for quit some time before it just disappeared, cool article thanks for posting that peg.

Sure is pretty.

It should be protected so a lot of people can see it not just to be stuffed and kept in a private place. Sure is different and pretty.

That is awesome! I have seen one albino, two piebalds, and 3 solid black ones. All of them were does.