White buffalo calf spotted in Yellowstone appears to fulfill ancient Lakota prophecy – WSB-TV Channel 2

Erin Braaten of Kalispell, Montana, was in the park shortly after the calf’s birth and took several photos of it June 4 in the Lamar Valley in the northeast corner of the park.

She got a closer look at the calf when traffic stopped as a group of bison crossed the road.

“I look and it’s this white buffalo calf. And I was totally, totally stunned,” she said.

Once the bison cleared the roadway, the Braatens turned around and found a place to park. They observed the calf and its mother for 30 to 45 minutes, the AP reported.

The calf has white fur, a black nose, black eyes and black hooves.

According to legend, about 2,000 years ago, a white buffalo calf woman appeared to the tribe during hard times and presented a pipe and a bundle to a tribesman.

She taught them to pray and said the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area for food. As she left, she transformed into a little white buffalo, legend has it.

“And one day, when times are hard again,” the woman said before leaving, “I will come back and stand on the earth like a white buffalo calf, with a black nose, with black eyes, with black hooves.”

A naming ceremony was held for the Yellowstone calf, but the name has not yet been revealed.

A ceremony celebrating the calf’s birth is planned for June 26 at the Buffalo Field Campaign headquarters in West Yellowstone.