'Takoda' is winner of Elgin bison name contest

The newest bison at Lords Park Zoo in Elgin finally has a name: Takoda, or "friend to all" from the Dakota language.

Mayor David Kaptain announced the 1-year-old bison's new name, chosen in a public voting contest, Saturday at the zoo.

Takoda received almost 50 percent of the vote among 1,149 ballots cast, said Terry Gabel, president of the volunteer group Friends of Lords Park Zoo, which purchased the bison last year.

"It was the clear winner. It wasn't even close," Gabel said. "That's good, in one sense. That means the community really wanted it."

The choice was among six Native American names. The Friends group had conferred with two Native American groups to ensure the name choices were appropriate, and one of the factors considered was that the names were easy to pronounce.

The zoo has two other bison, Drew and Becky, both about 17 years old.