First it was Rosie the tarantula, now this?

Days after the Butterfly Pavilion said that its popular Chilean rose hair tarantula was done meeting the public after 28 years, the University of Colorado announced a big animal retirement of its own: The school's current bison mascot, Ralphie VI, is retiring after four years of service. (No, buffalo and bison technically aren't the same animal, although the words have become largely interchangeable in North America.)

Nicknamed "Ember" by her handlers, Ralphie VI maintained the Boulder tradition of running across the field during CU football home games . She was the sixth bison to fill the role since 1967, according to CU, introduced at just fifteen months of age and weighing 500 pounds. Traditionally, the program has tapped female bison ra

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