Rare white bison born at Wyoming state park
White bison and her rare, white bison calf (Bear River State Park)
A rare, white bison born at a state park in Wyoming has led to an uptick in visitors hoping to get a glance of the cute calf.
Bear River State Park, near Evanston, celebrated the birth of the white bison calf in mid-May. The calf – park officials don’t know if it’s a male or female – is the first white bison birth at the park.
The white color is linked to a "small amount of cattle genetics" in the bison, "rather than a fluke like albinism or leucism."
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"It isn’t unusual that the calf is white too," park officials said.
The calf was born about half the size of other bison calves, park officials said, but that could be because the calf’s mother gave birth about a year earlier than most bison mothers.
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According to Cowboy State Daily, the park got two white bison heifers in 2021 from a ranch in Wyoming. The second heifer isn’t expected to produce a calf until next year.
"Please continue to give the bison room to try out motherhood and tend to their young!" park officials said.
Captive bison and elk have called the 324-acre park home since it opened in the early ‘90s, according to the park’s website. The park is open year-round and boasts miles of paved and unpaved trails in a river bottom habitat, Cowboy State Daily reports.