Visitors to US Yellowstone National Park hope to spot rare white bison

Difficulty: Summiteer (Level 3)

Grizzly bears and wolves are usually the main attractions for wildlife watchers in Yellowstone National Park in the United States. But this spring, a rare white bison calf stole the show.

In early June, photographer Erin Braaten took several images of the clumsy little creature snuggling with its mother. It was shortly after the calf’s birth near the banks of the Lamar River.

Few others saw the calf, and no one has seen it since. Even Braaten and his family did not see him again despite returning over the next two days, she said.

The event is important to Native Americans, Chief Arvol Looking Horse said. He is the spiritual leader of the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota Oyate people in South Dakota.

He describes the appearance of the little white buffalo as a blessing and a warning about the natural environment.