Bison

Fascinating facts about the Bison

• From a herd of 60 million in the late 1700s, American bison were driven down to just 541 individuals by 1889, a collapse that coincided with the forced removal of Plains peoples. Decades of protection lifted the wild count to roughly 31,000 by March 2019, and modern surveys in 2010 list 400,000-500,000 animals across conservation and commercial herds.
• A mature male can tip the scales at 1,270 kg (2,800 lb), making the American bison one of North America's heaviest land animals. Height at the shoulder can reach 186-201 cm (6 ft 1 in-6 ft 7 in), and the longest head-rump length stretches to 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in).
• For millennia, the bison has been a spiritual anchor for Great Plains Indigenous peoples, shaping their food, shelter, tools and ceremonies. Today it also holds the title of the United States' national mammal, a reminder that this massive grazer is both a cultural emblem and a living keystone of North American ecosystems.
• Bison breed once a year, with mating in August-September and a gestation of 285 days. Each cow births a single calf weighing 15-25 kg, which nurses for seven-eight months before weaning.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Bison

Across the rolling plains, the bison moves with a quiet majesty, its shaggy coat and curved horns a testament to its unyielding resilience in the face of a changing world. As it traverses the landscape, its deliberate footsteps stir the earth, sending tremors through the grasslands that have been its home for millennia, a realm where it has learned to thrive in the harshest of conditions. With each deliberate step, the bison embodies a primal power, a reminder of the wild beauty that still persists in our world, though its own future hangs precariously in the balance.

Seen on screen

More mammals to discover

Browse Feravox