American bison

The American bison or simply bison (Bison bison), also commonly known as the American
buffalo or simply buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed North America in
vast herds. Their historical range, by 9000 BCE, is described as the great bison belt, a tract of rich
grassland that ran from Alaska to the Gulf of Mexico, east to the Atlantic Seaboard (nearly to the
Atlantic tidewater in some areas) as far north as New York and south to Georgia and per some
sources down to Florida, with sightings in North Carolina near Buffalo Ford on the Catawba River as
late as 1750.[2][3][4] They became nearly extinct by a combination of commercial hunting and slaughter
in the 19th century and introduction of bovine diseases from domestic cattle. With a population in
excess of 60 million in the late 18th century, the species was down to 541 animals by 1889.
Recovery efforts expanded in the mid-20th century, with a resurgence to roughly 31,000[5] animals
today, largely restricted to a few national parks and reserves.
Two subspecies or ecotypes have been described: the plains bison (B. b. bison), smaller in size and
with a more rounded hump, and the wood bison (B. b. athabascae)—the larger of the two and
having a taller, square hump.[6][7][8][9][10][11] Furthermore, the plains bison has been suggested to consist
of a northern plains (B. b. montanae) and a southern plains (B. b. bison) subspecies, bringing the
total to three.[9] However, this is generally not supported. The wood bison is one of the largest wild
species of bovid in the world, surpassed by only the Asian gaur and wild water buffalo. It is the
heaviest, and second tallest extant land animal after moose in the Americas.
The American bison is the national mammal of the United States.
The term buffalo is sometimes considered to be a misnomer for this animal, and could be confused
with "true" buffalos, the Asian water buffalo and the African buffalo. However, bison is a Greek word
meaning ox-like animal, while buffalo originated with the French fur trappers who called these
massive beasts bœufs, meaning ox or bullock—so both names, bison and buffalo, have a similar
meaning. The name buffalo is listed in many dictionaries as an acceptable name for American
buffalo or bison. Samuel de Champlain applied the term buffalo (buffles in French) to the bison in
1616 (published 1619), after seeing skins and a drawing shown to him by members of the Nipissing
First Nation, who said they travelled forty days (from east of Lake Huron) to trade with another nation
who hunted the animals.[12] In English usage, the term buffalo dates to 1625 in North America, when
the term was first recorded for the American mammal.[13] It thus has a much longer history than the
term bison, which was first recorded in 1774.[14] The American bison is very closely related to the
European bison (also known as wisent or the European wood bison).
In Plains Indian languages in general, male and female buffaloes are distinguished, with each having
a different designation rather than there being a single generic word covering both sexes. Thus:

 in Arapaho: bii (buffalo cow), henéécee (buffalo bull)

 in Lakota: pté (buffalo cow), tȟatȟáŋka (buffalo bull)
Such a distinction is not a general feature of the language (for example, Arapaho possesses gender-
neutral terms for other large mammals such as elk, mule deer, etc.), and so presumably is due to the
special significance of the buffalo in Plains Indian life and culture.
A bison has a shaggy, long, dark-brown winter coat, and a lighter-weight, lighter-brown summer
coat. As is typical in ungulates, the male bison is slightly larger than the female and, in some cases,
can be considerably heavier. Plains bison are often in the smaller range of sizes, and wood bison in
the larger range. Head-rump lengths range from 2 to 2.8 m (6.6 to 9.2 ft) long and the tail adding 30
to 43 cm (12 to 17 in) or up to 65 cm (26 in).[15][16] Heights at withers in the species can range from
152 to 186 cm (60 to 73 in) for B. b. bison while B. b. athabascae reaches over 2 m (6.6 ft)[16].
Weights can range from 318 to 1,000 kg (701 to 2,205 lb)[17][18][19] Typical weight ranges in the species
were reported as 460 to 988 kg (1,014 to 2,178 lb) in males and 360 to 544 kg (794 to 1,199 lb) in
females, the lowest weights probably representing typical weight around the age of sexual maturity
at 2 to 3 years of age.[20] Mature bulls tend to be considerably larger than cows. Cow weights have
had reported medians of 450 to 495 kg (992 to 1,091 lb), with one small sample averaging 479 kg
(1,056 lb), whereas bulls may reportedly weigh a median of 730 kg (1,610 lb) with an average from a
small sample of 765 kg (1,687 lb).[21][22][23][24] The heaviest wild bull ever recorded weighed 1,270 kg
(2,800 lb).[25] When raised in captivity and farmed for meat, the bison can grow unnaturally heavy and
the largest semidomestic bison weighed 1,724 kg (3,801 lb).[17] The heads and forequarters are
massive, and both sexes have short, curved horns that can grow up to 2 ft (61 cm) long, which they
use in fighting for status within the herd and for defense.

A museum display shows the full skeleton of an adult male bison

Bison are herbivores, grazing on the grasses and sedges of the North American prairies. Their daily
schedule involves two-hour periods of grazing, resting, and cud chewing, then moving to a new
location to graze again. Sexually mature young bulls may try to start mating with cows by the age of
two or three years, but if more mature bulls are present, they may not be able to compete until they
reach five years of age.
For the first two months of life, calves are lighter in color than mature bison. One very rare condition
is the white buffalo, in which the calf turns entirely white.
Although they are superficially similar, the American and European bison exhibit a number of
physical and behavioral differences. Adult American bison are slightly heavier on average because
of their less rangy build, and have shorter legs, which render them slightly shorter at the shoulder.[26]
American bison tend to graze more, and browse less than their European relatives, because their
necks are set differently. Compared to the nose of the American bison, that of the European species
is set farther forward than the forehead when the neck is in a neutral position. The body of the
American bison is hairier, though its tail has less hair than that of the European bison. The horns of
the European bison point forward through the plane of its face, making it more adept at fighting
through the interlocking of horns in the same manner as domestic cattle, unlike the American bison
which favors charging.[27] American bison are more easily tamed than the European, and breed more
readily with domestic cattle.[28]

The bovine family (taurids and bisonids) diverged from the common ancestral line with water buffalo
and African buffalo about 5 to 10 million years ago.[29] Thereafter, the family lineage of bison and
taurine cattle does not appear to be a straightforward "tree" structure as is often depicted in much
evolution, because evidence exists of interbreeding and crossbreeding between different species and
members within this family, even many millions of years after their ancestors separated into different
species. This cross breeding was not sufficient to conflate the different species back together, but it has
resulted in unexpected relationships between many members of this group, such as yak being related to
American bison, when such relationships would otherwise not be apparent.

A 2003 study of mitochondrial DNA indicated four distinct maternal lineages in subtribe Bovina:

Taurine cattle and zebu

European bison (wisent)

American bison and yak[30]

Banteng, gaur, and gayal

However, Y chromosome analysis associated wisent and American bison.[31] An earlier study using
amplified fragment length polymorphism fingerprinting showed a close association of wisent and
American bison and probably with yak, but noted that the interbreeding of Bovini species made
determining relationships problematic.[32] It is shown, however, the wisent may have emerged by
species divergence initiated by the introgression of bison bulls in a separate ancestral species,[33] the
aurochs.[34]

Last of the Canadian Buffaloes, 1902, photograph: Steele and Company

The steppe bison (Bison priscus) diverged from the lineage that led to cattle (Bos taurus) about 2 to 5
million years ago. The bison genus is clearly in the fossil record by 2 million years ago.[18] The steppe
bison spread across Eurasia and was the bison that was pictured in the ancient cave paintings of Spain
and Southern France.

The European bison arose from the steppe bison, without fossil evidence of other ancestral species
between the steppe bison and the European bison, though the European bison might have arisen from
the lineage that led to American bison if that lineage backcrossed with the steppe bison. Again, the web
of relationships is confusing, but some evidence shows the European bison is descended from bison that
had migrated from Asia to North America, and then back to Europe, where they crossbred with existing
steppe bison.[18]

At one point, some steppe bison crossbred with the ancestors of the modern yak. After that cross, a
population of steppe bison (Bison priscus) crossed the Bering Land Bridge to North America. Evidence
has been found of multiple crossings of bison to and from Asia starting before 500,000 years ago and
continuing until at least 220,000 years ago. The steppe bison spread through the northern parts of North
America and lived in Eurasia until roughly 11,000 years ago[35] and North America until 4,000 to 8,000
years ago.[18]

Bison latifrons (giant bison or longhorn bison) is thought to have evolved in midcontinent North America
from B. priscus, after the steppe bison crossed into North America.[36][37][38] Giant bison (B. latifrons)
appeared in the fossil record around 500,000 years ago.[18] B. latifrons was one of many species of
North American megafauna which became extinct during the Quaternary extinction event. It is thought
to have disappeared some 21,000–30,000 years ago, during the late Wisconsin glaciation.[39]

The B. latifrons species was replaced by the smaller Bison antiquus. B. antiquus appeared in the North
American fossil record approximately 250,000 years ago.[40] B. antiquus, in turn, evolved into B.
occidentalis, then into the yet smaller B. bison—the modern American bison—some 5,000 to 10,000
years ago.[41][42] Some researchers consider B. occidentalis to be a subspecies of B. antiquus.[43]

Pile of American bison skulls to be used for fertilizer in the mid-1870s

During the population bottleneck, after the great slaughter of American bison during the 1800s, the
number of bison remaining alive in North America declined to as low as 541. During that period, a
handful of ranchers gathered remnants of the existing herds to save the species from extinction. These
ranchers bred some of the bison with cattle in an effort to produce "cattlo".[44] Accidental crossings
were also known to occur. Generally, male domestic bulls were crossed with buffalo cows, producing
offspring of which only the females were fertile. The crossbred animals did not demonstrate any form of
hybrid vigor, so the practice was abandoned. The proportion of cattle DNA that has been measured in
introgressed individuals and bison herds today is typically quite low, ranging from 0.56 to 1.8%.[44][45]
In the United States, many ranchers are now using DNA testing to cull the residual cattle genetics from
their bison herds. The U.S. National Bison Association has adopted a code of ethics which prohibits its
members from deliberately crossbreeding bison with any other species.[contradictory]

Range and population[edit]

Bison herd grazing at the National Bison Range in Montana

Despite being the closest relatives of domestic cattle native to North America, bison were never
domesticated by Native Americans. Later attempts of domestication by Europeans prior to the 20th
century met with limited success. Bison were described as having a "wild and ungovernable
temper";[46] they can jump close to 6 ft (1.8 m) vertically,[47] and run 35–40 mph (56–64 km/h) when
agitated. This agility and speed, combined with their great size and weight, makes bison herds difficult
to confine, as they can easily escape or destroy most fencing systems, including most razor wire.The
most successful systems involve large, 20 ft. high fences made from welded steel I beams sunk at least 6
feet or more into concrete. These fencing systems, while expensive, require very little maintenance.
Furthermore, making the fence sections overlap so the grassy areas beyond are not visible prevents the
buffalo from trying to get to new range.

About 500,000 bison currently exist on private lands and around 30,000 on public lands which includes
environmental and government preserves.[48] According to the IUCN, roughly 15,000 bison are
considered wild, free-range bison not primarily confined by fencing.

The southern extent of the historic range of the American bison includes northern Mexico and adjoining
areas in the United States as documented by archeological records and historical accounts from Mexican
archives from AD 700 to the 19th century. The Janos-Hidalgo bison herd has ranged between
Chihuahua, Mexico, and New Mexico, United States, since at least the 1920s.[49] The persistence of this
herd suggests that habitat for bison is suitable in northern Mexico. In 2009, genetically pure bison were
reintroduced to the Janos Biosphere Reserve in northern Chihuahua adding to the Mexican bison
population.[50] The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has reintroduced bison to over a dozen nature preserves
around the United States. In October 2016 TNC established the easternmost bison herd in the county, at
Kankakee Sands Nature Preserve in Morocco, Newton County, Indiana.[51] In 2014, U.S Tribes and
Canadian First Nations signed a treaty to help with the restoration of bison, the first to be signed in
nearly 150 years.[52]

Bison trails[edit]

The first thoroughfares of North America, except for the time-obliterated paths of mastodon or muskox
and the routes of the mound builders, were the traces made by bison and deer in seasonal migration
and between feeding grounds and salt licks. Many of these routes, hammered by countless hoofs
instinctively following watersheds and the crests of ridges in avoidance of lower places' summer muck
and winter snowdrifts, were followed by the aboriginal North Americans as courses to hunting grounds
and as warriors' paths. They were invaluable to explorers and were adopted by pioneers.

Bison traces were characteristically north and south, but several key east-west trails were used later as
railways. Some of these include the Cumberland Gap through the Blue Ridge Mountains to upper
Kentucky. A heavily used trace crossed the Ohio River at the Falls of the Ohio and ran west, crossing the
Wabash River near Vincennes, Indiana. In Senator Thomas Hart Benton's phrase saluting these sagacious
path-makers, the bison paved the way for the railroads to the Pacific.[53]

Habitat[edit]

A group of bison trudge across the landscape at the National Elk Refuge in Wyoming.

See also: Great bison belt

American bison live in river valleys, and on prairies and plains. Typical habitat is open or semiopen
grasslands, as well as sagebrush, semiarid lands, and scrublands. Some lightly wooded areas are also
known historically to have supported bison. Bison also graze in hilly or mountainous areas where the
slopes are not steep. Though not particularly known as high-altitude animals, bison in the Yellowstone
Park bison herd are frequently found at elevations above 8,000 feet and the Henry Mountains bison
herd is found on the plains around the Henry Mountains, Utah, as well as in mountain valleys of the
Henry Mountains to an altitude of 10,000 feet.

As livestock[edit]

Bison are increasingly raised for meat, hide, wool, and dairy products. The majority of American bison in
the world are raised for human consumption or fur clothing. Bison meat is generally considered to taste
very similar to beef, but is lower in fat and cholesterol, yet higher in protein than beef,[54] which has led
to the development of beefalo, a fertile hybrid of bison and domestic cattle.[55] In 2005, about 35,000
bison were processed for meat in the U.S., with the National Bison Association and USDA providing a
"Certified American Buffalo" program with birth-to-consumer tracking of bison via RFID ear tags. A
market even exists for kosher bison meat; these bison are slaughtered at one of the few kosher mammal
slaughterhouses in the U.S., and the meat is then distributed nationwide.
Canned bison meat for sale.

Bison are found in publicly and privately held herds. Custer State Park in South Dakota is home to 1,500
bison, one of the largest publicly held herds in the world, but some question the genetic purity of the
animals. Wildlife officials believe that free roaming and genetically pure herds on public lands in North
America can be found only in the Yellowstone Park bison herd,[56] the Henry Mountains bison herd at
the Book Cliffs and Henry Mountains in Utah, at Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota, Fort Peck
Indian Reservation in Montana, Mackenzie Bison Sanctuary in the Northwest Territories, Elk Island
National Park and Wood Buffalo National Park in Alberta, and Prince Albert National Park in
Saskatchewan. Another population, the Antelope Island bison herd on Antelope Island in Utah,
consisting of 550 to 700 bison, is also one of the largest and oldest public herds in the United States, but
the bison in that herd are considered to be only semifree roaming, since they are confined to the
Antelope Island. In addition, recent genetic studies indicate that, like most bison herds, the Antelope
Island bison herd has a small number of genes from domestic cattle. In 2002, the United States
government donated some bison calves from South Dakota and Colorado to the Mexican government.
Their descendants live in the Mexican nature reserves El Uno Ranch at Janos and Santa Elena Canyon,
Chihuahua, and Boquillas del Carmen, Coahuila, located near the southern banks of the Rio Grande, and
around the grassland state line with Texas and New Mexico.

Recent genetic studies of privately owned herds of bison show that many of them include animals with
genes from domestic cattle.[56] For example, the herd on Santa Catalina Island, California, isolated since
1924 after being brought there for a movie shoot, were found to have cattle introgression.[57] As few as
12,000 to 15,000 pure bison are estimated to remain in the world. The numbers are uncertain because
the tests used to date—mitochondrial DNA analysis—indicate only if the maternal line (back from
mother to mother) ever included domesticated bovines, thus say nothing about possible male input in
the process. Most hybrids were found to look exactly like purebred bison; therefore, appearance is not a
good indicator of genetics.

The size of the Canadian domesticated herd (genetic questions aside) grew dramatically through the
1990s and 2000s. The 2006 Census of Agriculture reported the Canadian herd at 195,728 head, a 34.9%
increase since 2001.[58] Of this total, over 95% was located in Western Canada, and less than 5% in
Eastern Canada. Alberta was the province with the largest herd, accounting for 49.7% of the herd and
45.8% of the farms. The next-largest herds were in Saskatchewan (23.9%), Manitoba (10%), and British
Columbia (6%). The main producing regions were in the northern parts of the Canadian prairies,
specifically in the parkland belt, with the Peace River region (shared between Alberta and British
Columbia) being the most important cluster, accounting for 14.4% of the national herd.[58] Canada also
exports bison meat, totaling 2,075,253 kilograms (4,575,150 lb) in 2006.[59]

A proposal known as Buffalo Commons has been suggested by a handful of academics and policymakers
to restore large parts of the drier portion of the Great Plains to native prairie grazed by bison.
Proponents argue that current agricultural use of the shortgrass prairie is not sustainable, pointing to
periodic disasters, including the Dust Bowl, and continuing significant human population loss over the
last 60 years. However, this plan is opposed by some who live in the areas in question.[56]

Behavior and ecology[edit]

Herd of bison in Yellowstone National Park

Play media

Grazing in winter, Yellowstone National Park: Bison use their heads to clear out snow for the grass.

American bison galloping, photos by Eadweard Muybridge, first published in 1887 in Animal Locomotion
Bison are migratory and herd migrations can be directional as well as altitudinal in some
areas.[60][61][62] Bison have usual daily movements between foraging sites during the summer. In a
montane valley, bison have been recorded traveling, on average, 2 miles (3.2 km) per day.[62] The
summer ranges of bison appear to be influenced by seasonal vegetation changes, interspersion and size
of foraging sites, the rut, and the number of biting insects.[60] The size of preserve and availability of
water may also be a factor.[62] Bison are largely grazers, eating primarily grasses and sedges. On
shortgrass pasture, bison predominately consume warm-season grasses.[63] On mixed prairie, cool-
season grasses, including some sedges, apparently compose 79–96% of their diet.[64] In montane and
northern areas, sedges are selected throughout the year.[60] Bison also drink water or consume snow
on a daily basis.[62]

Social behavior and reproduction[edit]

Bison fighting in Grand Teton National Park in Moose, Wyoming

Female bison live in maternal herds which include other females and their offspring. Male offspring
leave their maternal herd when around three years old and either live alone or join other males in
bachelor herds. Male and female herds usually do not mingle until the breeding season, which can occur
from July through September.[65] However, female herds may also contain a few older males. During
the breeding season, dominant bulls maintain a small harem of females for mating. Individual bulls
"tend" cows until allowed to mate, by following them around and chasing away rival males. The tending
bull shields the female's vision with his body so she will not see any other challenging males. A
challenging bull may bellow or roar to get a female's attention and the tending bull has to bellow/roar
back.[66] The most dominant bulls mate in the first 2–3 weeks of the season.[66] More subordinate
bulls mate with any remaining estrous cow that has not mated yet. Male bison play no part in raising the
young.

Bison herds have dominance hierarchies that exist for both males and females. A bison's dominance is
related to its birth date.[67] Bison born earlier in the breeding season are more likely to be larger and
more dominant as adults.[67] Thus, bison are able to pass on their dominance to their offspring as
dominant bison breed earlier in the season. In addition to dominance, the older bison of a generation
also have a higher fertility rate than the younger ones.[67]
Calf

Bison mate in August and September; gestation is 285 days. A single reddish-brown calf nurses until the
next calf is born. If the cow is not pregnant, a calf will nurse for 18 months. Cows nurse their calves for
at least 7 or 8 months, but most calves seem to be weaned before the end of their first year.[62] At
three years of age, bison cows are mature enough to produce a calf.

Bison have a life expectancy around 15 years in the wild and up to 25 years in captivity.

Bison have been observed to display homosexual behaviors, males much more so than females. In the
case of males, it is unlikely to be related to dominance, but rather to social bonding or gaining sexual
experience.[68]

Horning[edit]

Bison mate in late spring and summer in more open plain areas. During fall and winter, bison tend to
gather in more wooded areas. During this time, bison partake in horning behaviors. They rub their horns
against trees, young saplings, and even utility poles. Aromatic trees like cedars and pine seem to be
preferred. Horning appears to be associated with insect defense, as it occurs most often in the fall when
the insect population is at its highest.[69] Cedar and pines emit an aroma after bison horn them and this
seems to be used as a deterrent for insects.[69]

Wallowing behavior[edit]

A bison wallow is a shallow depression in the soil, which bison use either wet or dry. Bison roll in these
depressions, covering themselves with dust or mud. Past and current hypotheses to explain the purpose
of wallowing include grooming associated with shedding, male-male interaction (typically rutting), social
behavior for group cohesion, play, relief from skin irritation due to biting insects, reduction of
ectoparasite (tick and lice) load, and thermoregulation.[70] Bison wallowing has important ecosystem
engineering effects and enhances plant and animal diversity on prairies.[71]

Predation[edit]
American bison standing its ground against a wolf pack.

Wolf-Bison Demonstration at Wolf Park, Indiana.

While often secure from predation because of their size and strength, in some areas, bison are regularly
preyed upon by wolves. Wolf predation typically peaks in late spring and early summer, with attacks
usually being concentrated on cows and calves. Wolves more actively target herds with calves than
those without. The length of a predation episode varies, ranging from a few minutes to over nine
hours.[72][73] Bison display five apparent defense strategies in protecting calves from wolves: running
to a cow, running to a herd, running to the nearest bull, running in the front or center of a stampeding
herd, and entering water bodies such as lakes or rivers. When fleeing wolves in open areas, cows with
young calves take the lead, while bulls take to the rear of the herds, to guard the cows' escape. Bison
typically ignore wolves not displaying hunting behavior.[74] Wolf packs specializing in bison tend to have
more males, because their larger size than females allows them to wrestle prey to the ground more
effectively.[75] Healthy, mature bulls in herds rarely fall prey. Grizzly bears can also pose a threat to
calves and sometimes old, injured, or sick adult bison.

Dangers to humans[edit]

Tourists get close to a wild herd of American Bison to take a photo at Yellowstone National Park in
Wyoming

Bison are among the most dangerous animals encountered by visitors to the various North American
national parks and will attack humans if provoked. They appear slow because of their lethargic
movements, but can easily outrun humans; bison have been observed running as fast as 40 mph
(64 km/h).
Between 1980 and 1999, more than three times as many people in Yellowstone National Park were
injured by bison than by bears. During this period, bison charged and injured 79 people, with injuries
ranging from goring puncture wounds and broken bones to bruises and abrasions. Bears injured 24
people during the same time. Three people died from the injuries inflicted—one person by bison in
1983, and two people by bears in 1984 and 1986.[76]

Hunting[edit]

Main article: Bison hunting

Map from 1889 by William T. Hornaday, illustrating the Extermination of the American Bison

Bison hunt under the wolf-skin mask, 1832–33

Bison being chased off a cliff as "seen" and painted by Alfred Jacob Miller

Buffalo hunting (hunting of the American bison) was an activity fundamental to the Midwestern Native
Americans, which was later adopted by American professional hunters as well as by the U.S. government
to sabotage a central foodstuff of local tribes and force them into reservations, leading to the near-
extinction of the species around 1890.[77] It has since begun to recover.

American
Year
bison (est)

Pre-1800 60,000,000[78]

1830 40,000,000[78]

1840 35,650,000[79]

1870 5,500,000[78]

1880 395,000[79]

1889 541 (U.S.)[80]

1900 300 (U.S.)[78]

1944–47 5,000 (U.S.)[81] 15,000 (Canada)[79]

1951 23,340[82]

2000 360,000

Range history of bison in North America

Original distribution of plains
bison and wood bison in North
Map of the extermination of the
America along the "Great bison
bison to 1889. This map based on Distribution of public herds of
belt". Holocene bison (Bison
William Temple Hornaday's late- plains bison and of free-ranging or
occidentalis) is an earlier form at captive breeding wood bison in
19th century research.
the origin of plains bison and North America as of 2003.
wood bison. Original range
Wood bison
Holocene bison Range as of 1870
Plains bison
Wood bison Range as of 1889

Plains bison

Genetics[edit]

A major problem that bison face today is a lack of genetic diversity due to the population bottleneck the
species experienced during its near-extinction event. Another genetic issue is the entry of genes from
domestic cattle into the bison population, through hybridization.[56]

Officially, the "American buffalo" is classified by the United States government as a type of cattle, and
the government allows private herds to be managed as such. This is a reflection of the characteristics
that bison share with cattle. Though the American bison is not only a separate species, but also is usually
regarded as being in a separate genus from domestic cattle (Bos taurus), they clearly have a lot of
genetic compatibility and American bison can interbreed with cattle, although only the female offspring
are fertile in the first generation. These female hybrids can be bred back to either bison or domestic
bulls, resulting in either 1/4 or 3/4 bison young. Female offspring from this cross are also fertile, but
males are not reliably fertile unless they are either 7⁄8 bison or 7⁄8 domestic.[83] Moreover, when they
do interbreed, crossbreed animals in the first generation tend to look very much like purebred bison, so
appearance is completely unreliable as a means of determining what is a purebred bison and what is a
crossbred cow. Many ranchers have deliberately crossbred their cattle with bison, and some natural
hybridization could be expected in areas where cattle and bison occur in the same range. Since cattle
and bison eat similar food and tolerate similar conditions, they have often been in the same range
together in the past, and opportunity for crossbreeding may sometimes have been common.

In recent decades, tests were developed to determine the source of mitochondrial DNA in cattle and
bison, and most private "buffalo" herds were actually crossbred with cattle, and even most state and
federal buffalo herds had some cattle DNA. With the advent of nuclear microsatellite DNA testing, the
number of herds known to contain cattle genes has increased. Though about 500,000 bison exist on
private ranches and in public herds, perhaps only 15,000 to 25,000 of these bison are pure and not
actually bison-cattle hybrids. "DNA from domestic cattle (Bos taurus) has been detected in nearly all
bison herds examined to date."[84] Significant public bison herds that do not appear to have hybridized
domestic cattle genes are the Yellowstone Park bison herd, the Henry Mountains bison herd, which was
started with bison taken from Yellowstone Park, the Wind Cave bison herd, and the Wood Buffalo
National Park bison herd and subsidiary herds started from it, in Canada.

A landmark study of bison genetics performed by James Derr of Texas A&M University corroborated
this.[85] The Derr study was undertaken in an attempt to determine what genetic problems bison might
face as they repopulate former areas, and it noted that bison seem to be adapting successfully, despite
their apparent genetic bottleneck. One possible explanation for this might be the small amount of
domestic cattle genes that are now in most bison populations, though this is not the only possible
explanation for bison success.

A wood bison around Coal River in Canada

In the study, cattle genes were also found in small amounts throughout most national, state and private
herds. "The hybridization experiments conducted by some of the owners of the five foundation herds of
the late 1800s, have left a legacy of a small amount of cattle genetics in many of our existing bison
herds." He also said, "All of the state owned bison herds tested (except for possibly one) contain animals
with domestic cattle mtDNA."[85] It appears that the one state herd that had no cattle genes was the
Henry Mountains bison herd; the Henry Mountain herd was started initially with transplanted animals
from Yellowstone Park. However, the extension of this herd into the Book Cliffs of central Utah involved
mixing the founders with additional bison from another source, so it is not known if the Book Cliffs
extension of the herd is also free of cattle hybridization.
A separate study by Wilson and Strobeck, published in Genome, was done to define the relationships
between different herds of bison in the United States and Canada, and to determine whether the bison
at Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada and the Yellowstone Park bison herd were possibly separate
subspecies. The Wood Buffalo Park bison were determined to actually be crossbreeds between plains
and wood bison, but their predominant genetic makeup was that of the expected "wood buffalo".[10]
However, the Yellowstone Park bison herd was pure plains bison, and not any of the other previously
suggested subspecies. Another finding was that the bison in the Antelope Island herd in Utah appeared
to be more distantly related to other plains bison in general than any other plains bison group that was
tested, though this might be due to genetic drift caused by the small size of only 12 individuals in the
founder population. A side finding of this was that the Antelope Island bison herd appears to be most
closely related to the Wood Buffalo National Park bison herd, though the Antelope Island bison are
actually plains bison.

As a symbol[edit]

Native Americans[edit]

Among Native American tribes, especially the Plains Indians, the bison is considered a sacred animal and
religious symbol. According to University of Montana anthropology and Native American studies
professor S. Neyooxet Greymorning, "The creation stories of where buffalo came from put them in a
very spiritual place among many tribes. The buffalo crossed many different areas and functions, and it
was utilized in many ways. It was used in ceremonies, as well as to make tipi covers that provided homes
for people, utensils, shields, weapons and parts were used for sewing with the sinew."[86] The Sioux
consider the birth of a white buffalo to be the return of White Buffalo Calf Woman, their primary
cultural prophet and the bringer of their "Seven Sacred Rites". Among the Mandan and Hidatsa, the
White Buffalo Cow Society was the most sacred of societies for women.

North America[edit]

Wyoming uses a bison in its state flag

Manitoba uses a bison in its provincial flag, as seen inside the Manitoban coat of arms

The 1935 Buffalo nickel—this style of coin featuring an American bison was produced from 1913 to 1938

Series 1901 $10 legal tender depicting military explorers Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and an
American bison

First postage stamp with image of bison was issued US in 1898—4¢ "Indian Hunting Buffalo", part of the
Trans-Mississippi Exposition commemorative series

The American bison is often used in North America in official seals, flags, and logos. In 2016, the
American bison became the national mammal of the United States.[87] The bison is a popular symbol in
the Great Plains states: Kansas, Oklahoma, and Wyoming have adopted the animal as their official state
mammal, and many sports teams have chosen the bison as their mascot. In Canada, the bison is the
official animal of the province of Manitoba and appears on the Manitoba flag. It is also used in the
official coat of arms of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Several American coins feature the bison, most famously on the reverse side of the "buffalo nickel" from
1913 to 1938. In 2005, the United States Mint coined a nickel with a new depiction of the bison as part
of its "Westward Journey" series. The Kansas and North Dakota state quarters, part of the "50 State
Quarter" series, each feature bison. The Kansas state quarter has only the bison and does not feature
any writing, while the North Dakota state quarter has two bison. The Montana state quarter
prominently features a bison skull over a landscape. The Yellowstone National Park quarter also features
a bison standing next to a geyser.

Other institutions which have adopted the bison as a symbol or mascot include:

U.S. Department of the Interior

Bethany College (West Virginia)

Bucknell University and its athletic program, the Bucknell Bison

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bisons

Buffalo Grove High School

Buffalo Sabres

University at Buffalo, The State University of New York and its athletic program, the Buffalo Bulls

University of Colorado and its athletic program, the Colorado Buffaloes

Gallaudet University

Harding University and its athletic program, the Harding Bisons

Howard University and its athletic program, the Howard Bison

Seal of the State of Indiana

Lipscomb University and its athletic program, the Lipscomb Bisons

Coat of arms of Manitoba

Flag of Manitoba

University of Manitoba and its athletic program, the Manitoba Bisons

Marshall University and its athletic program, the Marshall Thundering Herd

Milligan College

Independence Party of Minnesota

Ralph Nader (mascot for his 2008 campaign for president)[88]

Nichols College

North Dakota State University and its athletic program, the North Dakota State Bison

Oklahoma Baptist University and its athletic program, the Oklahoma Baptist Bison

Point Park University

Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Rumble the Bison (the official mascot of the Oklahoma City Thunder)

Southwestern Law School

CFB Wainwright

West Texas A&M University and its athletic program, the West Texas A&M Buffaloes

Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo

See also[edit]

American Bison Society

Buffalo Commons — proposed multistate nature preserve of Great Plains habitat for American bison

The Great Plains Ecoregion

Buffalo Hunters' War

Plains hide painting

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