sEllowstone National Park officials said Friday a rare white buffalo sacred to Native Americans has not been seen since his birth on June 4th.
The birth of the white buffalo, who fulfilled a Lakota prophecy which portends better times, was the first recorded in Yellowstone’s history and is a landmark event for the buffalo’s recovery, park officials said in confirming the birth for the first time.
It’s an extraordinarily rare occurrence: A white buffalo, also known as a bison, is born in the wild once every 1 million births, or even less frequently, the park said.
It is unknown whether the calf – named Wakan Gli, which means “Sacred Return” in Lakota – is still alive.
The park’s statement mentioned that each spring, about one in five calves die shortly after birth due to natural hazards, but officials declined to directly answer questions about whether they believed the calf had died.
They confirmed the birth of the white buffalo after receiving photos and reports from numerous park visitors, professional wildlife observers, commercial guides and researchers. But since June 4, park officials have been unable to find it and authorities are unaware of any other confirmed sightings in the park, one of the last sanctuaries for free-ranging American bison.
Rangers who regularly work in the park’s most accessible areas, as well as inside, did not spot the animal, said park spokesperson Morgan Warthin.
Native American leaders earlier this week held a ceremony in honor of the sacred birth of the animal and give the name. Lakota members warn that the prophecy linked to the birth of the white buffalo is also a sign that more needs to be done to protect the Earth and its animals.
Suspicions about the calf’s fate grew as weeks passed without another sighting since its birth in Lamar Valley, a prime wildlife viewing spot in Yellowstone. Young buffalo can fall victim to predators, river currents, disease and other dangers.
Mike Mease, co-founder of the Buffalo Field Campaign, a conservation group that works with tribes to protect and honor wild buffalo and hosted this week’s ceremony, said he believes the calf is alive somewhere in the park, away from roads and walkways. most visitors follow. He said a grizzly bear seen by Yellowstone visitors earlier this month with five cubs, an unusually large litter, also has not been seen since.
But the most important thing about the white buffalo is that a prophecy, which is both a warning and a blessing, was fulfilled, Mease said.
“Whether he is alive or dead, the message has been transmitted from the heavens, and times are different now. We have to make changes for the future,” he said.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
