Posted on 06/07/2024 7:08:59 AM PDT by Red Badger
This white bison calf was born Tuesday afternoon in Yellowstone National Park. (Courtesy Erin Braaten)
A rare white bison calf was born late Tuesday in Yellowstone National Park. A wildlife photographer originally thought it was a coyote until she looked back and saw the calf. "It was amazing," she said.
In a rare event, a white bison calf was born in Yellowstone National Park on Tuesday afternoon.
Park visitor and wildlife photographer Erin Braaten was there at just the right time to practically witness the calf’s birth in Yellowstone’s famed and wildlife-rich Lamar Valley.
“The afterbirth, the placenta was still there, and the calf was just standing up,” she told Cowboy State Daily during a telephone conversation Wednesday before she and her family headed back out of cellphone service.
Braaten is a wildlife enthusiast and photographer from Kalispell, Montana. She and her family visit Yellowstone two or three times a year, but she never dreamed she’d be lucky enough to see such a rarity as a white bison calf taking its first steps.
How Rare? Wild white bison calves are very rare, according to the National Bison Association.
A white bison calf was born in May 2023 at Bear River State Park near Evanston.
That calf, however, was white because of genetics from Charolais cattle, whereas the wild calf born in Yellowstone is likely a pure product of nature.
Cowboy State Daily reached out to the association and the National Park Service, which manages Yellowstone's wildlife, to confirm the rarity of the wild white bison in the park, but did not hear back before this story was posted.
‘I thought Maybe It Was A Coyote’ Braaten said that at about 4 p.m. on Tuesday, the day was going like a typical visit to Yellowstone, as she and her family drove in preparing for a camping trip.
Then she caught a glimpse of something that made the trip anything but typical.
“We were just driving along, and there were some bison crossing the road. I was looking back, and I saw what I thought maybe was a coyote,” she said.
But a closer look revealed a true wonder.
“We were totally surprised,” she said. “It was a white bison calf.”
A Sign Of Hope Braaten and her family stopped to admire the little calf and its mother. And she managed to get some photos from a safe, respectful distance.
“The calf was so tiny, it was amazing,” she said, adding that there was no way to determine whether it was a male or female.
She said that they planned to go back to the area later Wednesday to see if they could catch another look, and perhaps some more photos of the white calf.
Braaten said she has Native American heritage, and from what she understands, the birth of a white Bison calf has profound meaning. It’s a symbol of hope, and that was good to see given the current state of things in America.
“It’s a great blessing. It’s a good omen,” she said. “It means there could be a good change coming.”
Contact Mark Heinz at mark@cowboystatedaily.com
Have to wait until it’s old enough to determine its own pronouns.
But not just any old white buffalo. Albinos with pink eyes do not count. Albinos are not uncommon and the native American tribes know that.
The WHITE BUFFALO of prophecy must have brown eyes..............
The calf’s a republican!
Up the road a piece a guy raised “bison” a herd of 20 or so. Threw two white ones in one season. Both albinos. Have pics around here some place.
Thank you! See post #19. He posted what I was going to post.
We have NA friends and for some of them this will be a very big thing.
Wow.
cute, can’t wait to get a selfie with it when it grows up.
Very cool! Amazing animals too!
Thanks Red Badger.
Shonka Tonka.
Understandable. The NBA is famous but always on the move.
You bet. I knew you’d enjoy it and appreciate it and post 19 which you were going to post proves it.
Enjoy your day surrounded by beauty and your beautiful herd.
Great change, eh?
If I only had a nickel...
Oh,. it’s old enough now....
/sarc
The other White Meat!
Thank you! And a wonderful Friday and an even better weekend to you and to yours!
👍 :)
How many tribes around Yellowstone will claim their sacred right to hunt and butcher this creature?
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