{"id":710268,"date":"2026-06-17T22:27:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T22:27:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/710268\/"},"modified":"2026-06-17T22:27:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T22:27:14","slug":"neal-smith-national-wildlife-refuges-rare-white-bison-calf-dies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/710268\/","title":{"rendered":"Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge&#8217;s rare white bison calf dies"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe rare white bison calf born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge has died. Video above: KCCI gets up close with bison at Neal Smith National Wildlife RefugeOfficials with the refuge in Prairie City shared the news on its Facebook page Wednesday.Only about 1 in 1 million bison calves are born white, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which said Iowa&#8217;s calf was born on April 30. They&#8217;re considered a sacred symbol of hope and renewal by many Native American tribes. &#8220;We recognize the cultural significance that a white bison holds for many tribal nations and are working to communicate with them in a timely and respectful manner,&#8221; officials said in the death announcement. &#8220;The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its partners are gathering information and evaluating the circumstances surrounding the calf\u2019s death.&#8221;Photos of the white bison born at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\tPRAIRIE CITY, Iowa \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>The rare white bison calf born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge has died. <\/p>\n<p>Video above: KCCI gets up close with bison at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge<\/p>\n<p>Officials with the refuge in Prairie City shared the news on its Facebook page Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>Only about 1 in 1 million bison calves are born white, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which said Iowa&#8217;s calf was born on April 30. They&#8217;re considered a sacred symbol of hope and renewal by many Native American tribes. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We recognize the cultural significance that a white bison holds for many tribal nations and are working to communicate with them in a timely and respectful manner,&#8221; officials said in the death announcement. &#8220;The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its partners are gathering information and evaluating the circumstances surrounding the calf\u2019s death.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>\n\tThis content is imported from Facebook.<br \/>\n\tYou may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.\n<\/p>\n<p>Photos of the white bison born at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"A rare white bison shown just days after its birth in the spring of 2026 at \ufeffNeal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Prairie City, Iowa. Officials announced on June 17 that it had died.\" title=\"A rare white bison shown just days after its birth in the spring of 2026 at \ufeffNeal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Prairie City, Iowa. Officials announced on June 17 that it had died.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/99ea2c91-0554-4fb0-8b90-4b9ede858a5d.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tLinda Frazier\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA rare white bison shown just days after its birth in the spring of 2026 at\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Prairie City, Iowa. Officials announced on June 17 that it had died.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"The rare white bison calf born this spring at \ufeffNeal Smith National Wildlife Refuge has died.\" title=\"The rare white bison calf born this spring at \ufeffNeal Smith National Wildlife Refuge has died. \" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/8f9b3b58-972f-4cc2-89a9-5dd8b20dc885.png\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tMonica Blaser\/U.S. Department of the Interior\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA rare white bison calf was\u00a0born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Prairie City.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"Only about 1 in 1 million bison calves are born white, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which said Iowa's calf was born on April 30. They're considered a sacred symbol of hope and renewal by many Native American tribes. \ufeff\ufeff\" title=\"Only about 1 in 1 million bison calves are born white, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which said Iowa's calf was born on April 30. They're considered a sacred symbol of hope and renewal by many Native American tribes. \ufeff\ufeff\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/79047387-9774-4707-abe2-a541be7d3deb.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tLinda Frazier\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOnly about 1 in 1 million bison calves are born white, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which said Iowa\u2019s calf was born on April 30. They\u2019re considered a sacred symbol of hope and renewal by many Native American tribes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"\ufeffA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.\" title=\"\ufeffA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1f659d76-71dd-40ba-ac9f-dac837b04f6e.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tLinda Frazier\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"\ufeffA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.\" title=\"\ufeffA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1f579f32-bba4-4cc0-984d-1e53aad0304a.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tLinda Frazier\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"\ufeffA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.\" title=\"\ufeffA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/20ed93ee-7454-43f9-8f49-ec85802b8ee4.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tLinda Frazier\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA rare white bison calf, shown at just a few days old, grazes at the\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge on May 3, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"Carson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at \ufeffNeal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.&#13;&#10;&#13;&#10;\ufeff\" title=\"Carson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at \ufeffNeal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.  \ufeff\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/3ad3c5a6-b3fe-4956-9a55-df9fe22125bf.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tCarson Galloway Photography\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCarson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"Carson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.\" title=\"Carson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/094cc57d-a328-4314-b7bd-37eb35c92625.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tCarson Galloway Photography\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCarson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\" aspect-ratio-original lazyload lazyload-in-view\" alt=\"Carson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.\" title=\"Carson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0382685a-84d3-4b9c-9296-722cdd9cbf64.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tCarson Galloway Photography\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCarson Galloway shared this photo of the rare white bison born this spring at\u00a0Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The rare white bison calf born this spring at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge has died. Video above:&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":710269,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[79,306338,201],"class_list":["post-710268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-science","tag-white-bison","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=710268"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710268\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/710269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=710268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=710268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=710268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}