Seeing the bison herds at Dogwood Canyon Nature Park in the Ozarks is cool enough, but now there’s an extra special reason to visit this winter. Earlier this year, the herd of 25 welcomed a rare white baby American bison named Takoda, a Sioux word that means “friend to everyone.”
White bison are highly symbolic in Native American tradition. According to their teachings, a white bison is a sacred animal that “promotes prayerful communication between Indigenous people and the Great Spirit, and [is] also a sign of peace and good fortune,” the park explains.