MONTROSE, Colo — A Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) employee made an extremely rare find in southwest Colorado this week. 

CPW said on X Wednesday that during a big game classification flight, Montrose area wildlife biologist Evan Phillips spotted a piebald cow elk. 

Piebald elk sightings are few and far between — CPW said the piebald trait occurs in about 1 out of every 100,000 elk. 

A number of animals can carry the piebald trait. According to AZ Animals, animals called “piebald” have a pigmented background of hair, scales, or feathers with a unique pattern of white, or unpigmented, spots. The condition refers to the absence of melanocytes, or mature melanin-forming cells, in specific skin and hair areas.

The “pie” in piebald is short for “magpie,” while “bald” refers to the animals’ white patches.

Piebald elk’s rare coloring makes them more vulnerable in the wild. According to AZ Animals, their unique patterns make them easy for predators to spot and attack them.

The pattern may provide some protection from hunters, however. AZ Animals said hunters believe that killing or even seeing a piebald animal brings bad luck or curses the hunter. 

But one thing is for certain — if you ever spot a piebald elk, you’ve seen something few people get to see. 

SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Animals and Wildlife  

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