Yellowstone's Mystical White Bison Disappeared Weeks After Historic Birth

Well, that can't bode well.

The mystical white bison of Yellowstone National Park, which fulfilled a Native American prophecy of future prosperity, has disappeared.

Wakan Gli, meaning “Sacred Return” in Lakota, has not been seen since its birth on June 4, the National Park Service announced Friday.

“To date, park staff have not been able to locate the calf,” the agency said in a statement.

Little Prophecy was first spotted earlier this month grazing in a field in the lush Lamar Valley, clinging to her mother.

Park officials declined to comment on where this rare white bovine may have gone since its first and only sighting, but said in the release that each spring, approximately one in five calves die shortly after birth due to natural hazards.

It is hoped that little Waka Gli is alive, as authorities have not seen the animal dead or alive.

The NPS statement comes just days after hundreds of people attended a Lakota bison naming ceremony, where they bestowed the name Wakan Gli on the absent honoree.

Wednesday's event, featuring drumming, dancing and moving speeches, commemorated the fulfillment of a sacred prophecy and a message to better care for the Earth.

“It’s up to each of you to make this happen for the future of our children. We need to come together and bring back that good energy,” Chief Arvol Looking Horse told the crowd.

The bison is extraordinarily rare, with only one bison born in the wild in 1 million births, and marks a first in the recorded history of Yellowstone National Park.

Although NPS officials have yet to see the mystical creature with their own eyes, the agency said the multitude of photos taken by lucky hikers and tour groups have confirmed that the calf was born on the same day .

Workers remain optimistic about Waka Gli's fate. Mike Mease, co-founder of the Buffalo Field Campaign, a conservation group that works with tribes to protect wild bison, suspects the calf is hiding away from the roads and trails most tourists use.

But the most important thing about the white bison is that a prophecy, which is both a warning and a blessing, has been fulfilled, Mease told The Associated Press.

“Whether dead or alive, the message has been relayed from the heavens and times are different now. We need to make changes for the future,” he said.