It's A Boy
White Cloud's Calf
National Buffalo Museum JAMESTOWN – On August 31, 2007 White Cloud, a rare albino buffalo, gave birth to her fifth calf. However, this was not your typical brown buffalo calf as her other four calves have been. This year White Cloud beat the odds (some say in the billions) and gave birth to a white calf.
White Cloud was born on July 10, 1996 on the Shirek Buffalo Farm in Michigan, ND. She joined the herd at the site of the National Buffalo Museum in Jamestown, ND in May of 1997. Since the day that she was released among the herd at Jamestown, she has been intriguing and inspiring to visitors. White Cloud was DNA tested for albino genes as well as cattle genes before she came to her new home at the National Buffalo Museum. The results of those tests indicate that she is pure albino and is also pure bison (commonly known as buffalo).
The challenge following the August 31 birth of the white calf has been determining whether or not the calf was a male or female. “Yesterday we were able to get close enough to the calf and White Cloud to determine that it is indeed a male calf” said Museum Director, Felicia Sargeant. “Since the museum has established a hands-off approach to the buffalo herd, we have let White Cloud determine how close we could get to the calf. Thankfully, yesterday she was interested in eating the apples that we had brought her and was more than willing to stand still so that we could get a good look at the calf while it nursed.”
The National Buffalo Museum is a non-profit educational organization devoted to the cultural and natural history of bison and the prairie. The museum is open year round. Current hours are Monday – Friday 9 am – 5 pm, Saturday 10 am – 5 pm, and Sunday 12 – 5 pm. The Museum and the herd are located in the Frontier Village at the site of the “World’s Largest Buffalo” in Jamestown just north of interstate 94 at exit #258. The Frontier Village gates are open 8 am – 7 pm through September then hours change to 8am – 5 pm through April. For more information contact Felicia Sargeant at the National Buffalo Museum, 701-252-8648 or go to NationalBuffaloMuseum.Com
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