Several recent sightings of what appears to be an albino deer in Farmington Hills are prompting concerns about the rare animal’s safety as a deer cull approaches early next year.

Those concerns are unwarranted, according to an expert from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, because albinism is a genetic disorder. Protecting an albino would lead to less fit deer in the herd, said Chad Stewart, the DNR’s cervid and wildlife interactions unit supervisor. The term cervid refers to a family of animals that includes deer, elk, moose and similar species.

Wildlife advocates and opponents of the cull, which the City Council approved in April, remain unconvinced.

“I never thought I would see such an amazing thing,” said Farmington Hills resident Rohit Seshadri of the encounter with the doe.

He took photos of the animal when he spotted it in late May, but did not want the exact location disclosed, expressing fears about “bloodthirsty psychopaths who are looking to kill her if they know exactly where to find her,” he said in an email.

A deer that appeared to be an albino was spotted on 12 Mile Road between Orchard Lake and Middlebelt roads on Wednesday, June 18, according to a report on Fox 2 Detroit.

Area residents have recently taken photographs or videos of the rare deer and posted them on Farmington-Farmington Hills Facebook pages.

An albino, which is characterized by a white hide and sometimes has a pink nose or eyes, occurs once in 20,000 to 30,000 births, Stewart said.

“Individuals typically show poor survival and have reduced fitness, often with vision problems,” he said in an email. “Fully protecting these individuals allows that genetic disorder to become further expressed in the population, and ultimately would lead to less fit individuals in the herd. There is no biological reason for protecting albino deer.”

Michigan does not restrict albino deer hunting, he said.

City Council members say the majority of residents support their decision to authorize sharpshooters from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reduce the herd in designated areas this winter. The council also authorized trained bow hunters to further reduce the herd.

Proponents say the deer have become too numerous, and reducing the population will decrease the number of car-deer crashes and the destruction of landscaping. Farmington and Southfield have also approved deer culls for early next year.

But a vocal group of opponents say the DNR, which recommended the cull, did not advise the three cities on nonlethal methods of controlling the population.

Opponents say the possibility of killing a rare albino is one more reason not to have a cull.

“She’s beautiful. Please contact City Hall, council and the mayor to let them know we don’t want her or our other deer shot this winter. If no one speaks up, she is doomed,” said one commenter on a community Facebook page.

Michelle Dimaria, a cull opponent, told the council at a recent meeting that the organized hunt could result in the killing of the rare albino, as it did during a cull at Kensington Metropark 10 years ago.

Residents and nature advocates called for a policy review after news surfaced that a beloved albino at the park in Milford Township had been killed, according to a 2015 report in The Oakland Press.

But park officials said in 2015 that the program would continue, as the sharpshooter team that carried out the kill did everything by the book.

The killing was not intentional, park officials said. They told sharpshooters to avoid the white deer if possible, but they were working in heavy snow on the night the animal was shot.

The eight-point buck was a majestic sight at the park for more than three years, nature advocates said.

“We have all lost something here, something unique, beautiful, rare and irreplaceable,” wrote Gregory Miller, a Howell man who photographed wildlife at Kensington, in a letter to park administrators.