Custer, a white buffalo, is the newest arrival at Morristown, Tenn.’s Briarwood Ranch Safari Park. Owner Ron Nease said he’s been trying for years to get one of the rare animals at the 150-acre zoo.MORRISTOWN, Tenn. – Briarwood Ranch Safari Park owner Ron Nease wasn’t buffaloed by the formidable task of finding and securing the most recent addition to his zoo. Instead, he grabbed the bull by the horns.
Custer, a rare white bison, arrived at the Morristown park three weeks ago in a cattle trailer from North Dakota, a welcome sight after years of combing through auction listings and livestock ads.
“I’ve searched for a white buffalo for sale for years,” Nease said Wednesday from Briarwood’s offices. “I finally found this one on a ranch that had never sold one before, and thought it would add so much to our attraction.”
According to the National Bison Association, white buffalo are rare indeed, occurring in only one in 10 million births.
A few different genetic conditions can give the herd animals white coats: albinism, a similar condition called leucism or sharing genes with domesticated cattle, from a hybrid ancestor referred to as a beefalo.