Massimilla family video / SWNSWhile driving through rural Iowa at dusk, Kurt Massimilla and his family experienced a once-in-a-lifetime wildlife encounter—spotting not one, but two rare albino deer.
The Dubuque-area residents witnessed a rare incident— with some estimates placing the odds of seeing two together at 1 in 400 million, said Kurt.
The sighting (see the video below) occurred five weeks ago as they were heading home from a birthday dinner for the family’s 13-year-old son.
“We were driving home just at dusk on this back road and all of a sudden, my wife was like, ‘Oh my God, an albino deer!’ Just the tone in her voice…she was like a giddy teenager,” the 56-year-old recalled.
“I actually saw it, and I thought it was like a white llama or something like that.
“So I put on the brakes and backed up, and there were two of them out in the field just hanging out,” he told SWNS news agency.
The genetic mutation that causes albinism in deer results in a lack of pigmentation, making them stand out starkly against their surroundings, so it’s illegal to hunt them in Iowa and other US states.
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Massimilla family video / SWNSA pair were reportedly spotted elsewhere in the state previously in both 2020 and 2023 and estimates calculate that albinism occurs about once in every 30,000 deer births. Deer can also exhibit leucism, a condition that causes a lack of pigment, resulting in white patches or a fully white coat.
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Kurt, who recently moved to Iowa from Arizona, has a deep appreciation for wildlife.
“We’re big wildlife enthusiasts, so it was kind of neat to see. We love seeing animals that you typically don’t see on the beaten trail.”
LISTEN to the excitement expressed in the car during their family video below…
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