Bison is one of the first mammals you may think of when you think of America and are the country’s national mammal. They are ingrained in the history and culture of the United States, not only in the early Native Americans but have been featured on state flags and seals.
The bison is known by its binomial species name of Bison bison. Bison are the largest land mammal in North America and live in the United States and Canada. There were over thirty million bison in America at one time, but they were forced to near extinction by hunting and people’s movement to the west.
Bison are herd animals that migrate greatly due to food and water constraints. Bison can be extremely dangerous due to their large size and unpredictable nature. Bison do not have many natural predators but can be taken down by a pack of wolves.
There is a lot of information about American bison, and I wanted to condense this for you. I am sure you will find some fantastic facts about these magnificent American animals.
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Etymology
The American bison is also known as the American buffalo. Although known as buffalo, they are a distinct species from the Asian water buffalo and African buffalo.
The word bison is a Greek word that means ox-like animal. Bison has been known as buffalo since 1619 when Samuel de Champlain published his book ‘The works of Samuel de Champlain”.
Samuel, a Frenchman, named the buffalo after translating the word beef. The French word is boeuf, which means a large cow. The book was written after visiting natives of the Nipissing First Nation. They showed him a drawing of the animal along with various skins and hides.
Bison was a word that was coined in 1774. Due to the American Bison being a distinct species from the Asian Buffalo and African buffalo, the American species was changed to its taxonomic name of Bison bison.
The name change was due to the American buffalo’s similarity to another animal, the European bison, also known as the wisent (Bison bonasus).
What is a Male and Female Bison Called?
The male Bison is a bull; the female Bison is called a cow.
Range
Approximately sixty million bison were living in North America in the 1800s, but their numbers were depleted to an estimated three hundred and twenty-five by 1884. The bison were essential for food, clothing, shelter, and tools for the Native Americans. For the early settlers to conquer the west, they needed to overcome the locals. The US army campaigned to defeat the Native Americans by destroying the bison.
Bison could be found across most southern states and northern Mexico before their near extinction.
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United States
There are approximately five hundred thousand bison currently in America. These can be found in Wyoming, Montana, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Utah, and North and South Dakota.
Plains Bison
In Wyoming, bison can be found at Yellowstone National Park. There are two herds in Yellowstone with nearly five thousand bison.
In Montana, the bison can also be seen in Yellowstone National Park. They can also be found at the National Bison Refuge near Missoula, where there are approximately five hundred bison.
There are some fantastic places to see buffalo roaming wild in Oklahoma. The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge has a population of six hundred and fifty, and ninety plains bison can be seen at the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve.
If you live in Nebraska or want to visit, you can see bison on Grand Island and Mormon Island. Forty-two wild plains bison were moved into the state in 2015.
Although there are no longer any wild bison in Iowa, there is a herd seen at the Jester Park wildlife enclosure.
Kansas is a great spot to see wild bison and has the fifth-largest population. The Maxwell Wildlife Refuge has a herd of two hundred. There are several other places to see them in Kansas, such as the Wild West Heritage Buffalo and Longhorn Exhibit and Sandsage Bison Range and Wildlife Area. They can also be found at Plumlee Buffalo Ranch and the Lazy Heart D Ranch.
Utah has one of only four purebred herds in North America, with a herd of up to four hundred bison in the Henry Mountains. There is another bison herd in Antelope Island State Park. Approximately seven hundred plains bison are living here.
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South Dakota
Located in Wind Cave National Park, a herd of up to four hundred bison can be seen roaming the plains.
North Dakota
There are small herds in two main sites in North Dakota. These can be found in the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, where you can also see the former president’s ranch. Although he originally hunted bison, Theodore Roosevelt formed the American Bison Society in 1905 to save the bison.
There are two herds with four hundred animals in the south and three hundred in the North. The second place to see them is in the Cross Ranch Nature Preserve in Hensler, where you can see a herd of more than two hundred plains bison.
Wood Bison
Alaska
Wood bison can only be found in one state of the United States, Alaska. There is a herd of approximately one hundred and fifty wood bison in Shageluk. Since their reintroduction to Alaska in 2015, nearly thirty calves have been born.
Canada
There are two subspecies of bison in Canada, the plains bison, and the wood bison. These can be found from the Northwest Territories to Manitoba, the Yukon, and Alberta.
Plains Bison
Alberta
Due to their near extinction, conservation efforts were put in place in Canada. A herd of more than 700 plains bison was moved from Montana between 1907 and 1909. They were transported to Elk Island National Park in Alberta. The small herd grew rapidly and is now one of the best success stories for species recovery programs.
The plains bison from Elk Island National Park are now used to establish new herds across Alberta. Most bison found on farms in Canada also come from the national park. The number of plains bison in Elk Island National Park is approximately four hundred.
Saskatchewan
Plains bison can be found in southwest Saskatchewan. The bison can be seen on the Old Man On His Back Plateau and the McCusker and Sturgeon Rivers. Plains bison can also be found in Grasslands National Park, with over three hundred adult bison in the park.
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British Columbia
Plains bison can also be seen in British Columbia in the Pink Mountain area and the Liard River. There are thought to be several hundred animals in the herd.
Wood Bison
The other subspecies of bison, the wood bison, were taken from Elk Island National Park to nearby Wood Buffalo National Park.
British Columbia
The wood bison can be seen in British Columbia, with a herd of approximately one hundred bison occupying the Hay-Zama area in the northeast of the province. In Nordquist, there are less than eighty animals, and in Ettithun Lake, there are just over one hundred and twenty wood bison.
Alberta
There is a population of approximately three hundred wood bison in Elk Island National Park.
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories have a few different herds of bison, with over one hundred in Nahanni and a smaller bison group in Mackenzie.
Yukon
The Yukon Territory has a herd of over twelve hundred animals, which can be found around Aishihik Lake.
Distribution
Wood Buffalo National Park, now the largest in Canada, had a population of just two hundred, but by the mid-1920s, the number had risen to almost fifteen hundred. The increase in numbers was wiped out between 1925 and 1927 when seven thousand plains bison were moved into the park from Buffalo National Park.
The increase in numbers led to the two subspecies being hybridized, and by the 1940s, wood bison were thought almost extinct. Seventeen years later, in 1957, a small herd of wood bison was found. Some of this herd were moved to two different territories. The first was moved to Mackenzie Bison Sanctuary in the Northwest Territories; the second was moved to Elk Island National Park. There are thought to be up to 7,000 wood bison in Canada presently.
A smaller group of plains bison was also established in Banff National Park in 1898. They were kept here as a paddock display herd. Although no longer there, a new wild population was bought to Banff in 2017.
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Habitat
Bison live on prairies and plains and in river valleys. They prefer open grasslands, scrubland, and sagebrush, although they will venture into lightly wooded areas. They will also roam into mountainous regions but are not an animal that likes high altitudes. They can sometimes be found grazing up to ten thousand feet above sea level. They will not graze on steep slopes in hilly or mountainous regions.
How Many Bison are in the United States?
The population of bison in the United States has increased dramatically since the late 1800s. Although wild bison are still not even a fraction of the level they were at that time, approximately five hundred thousand are currently in the country.
There are approximately one hundred and eighty-four thousand bison in the US living on farms and private ranches, with 1,775 ranches and farms currently raising them.
In Canada, approximately 120,000 bison live on ranches and farms.
There are another 10,000 bison in US federal herds and approximately 9,000 in state and other public herds. Along with this population, another 20,000 bison are estimated to be on tribal lands.
Most of the current bison can be found on farms and private ranches, with only the following numbers left in the wild.
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How Many Wild Bison are in the United States?
| State | Population | Subspecies |
| Alaska | 150 | Wood |
| Kansas | 200 | Plains |
| Nebraska | 42 | Plains |
| North Dakota | 900 | Plains |
| Oklahoma | 740 | Plains |
| South Dakota | 400 | Plains |
| Utah | 1100 | Plains |
| Wyoming | 5500 | Plains |
How Many Wild Bison are in Canada?
| Province | Population | Subspecies |
| Alberta | 400 | Plains |
| British Columbia | 350 | Plains |
| British Columbia | 300 | Wood |
| Northwestern Territories | 150 | Wood |
| Saskatchewan | 300 | Plains |
| Yukon | 1200 | Wood |
Subspecies
There are two subspecies of American bison currently. These are the plains bison and the wood bison.
Plains Bison
The plains bison is the smaller of the two subspecies of bison. Plains bison can be seen in many places following their near extinction from human hunting until the 1900s. There are approximately 3,000 bison in Yellowstone National Park, the largest herd of bison in North America.
Plains bison, although smaller than wood bison, are still huge animals. Native Americans used the bison not only for food but also for tools and weapons such as arrowheads, clothing, and shelter.
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Wood Bison
The wood bison is the larger and heavier subspecies of American bison. They are the heaviest living animal in North America and can weigh up to nearly 1,200 kg (2,645 lb.)
The wood bison is characterized by the shoulder’s muscular hump being further forward towards the head than directly above the front legs.
By the 1900s, wood bison were thought to be extinct. However, a herd of approximately 200 was found in Alberta, Canada. This discovery bought the wood bison back from the brink of extinction, and there are currently about 7,000 wild wood bison.
What is the Behavior of a Bison?
Like many other ungulates, Bison spend much of their day eating, regurgitating their food, and resting.
Bison are most active during the early morning and late afternoon due to the heat and temperatures they live in.
The bison like to wallow in either wet or dry soil. They use a shallow depression in which they roll themselves, covering them with dust or mud. Although scientists are not sure of the wallowing reason, other animals do this to groom themselves, relieve themselves from itching associated with insects such as mosquitoes, and as social behavior.
How Fast is a Bison?
For such a large animal, the bison is incredibly fast. They can run at 64 km/h (40 mph). With their surprising speed, incredible strength, and power, bison are very dangerous to humans and can outrun them over short distances.
How Do Bison Sleep?
Bison are members of the Bovidae family, but unlike other animals such as sheep, deer, and cattle, they sleep lying down.
Unlike other family members, they cannot lock their legs to sleep standing. Due to their large stature, bison are unlikely to be attacked, even by predators such as grizzly bears. Due to this, they will sleep on the ground. Although a grizzly could take down a large bull, they are unlikely to come out of the attack uninjured and may not survive the following winter.
Bison will sleep in a herd to protect themselves. They will sleep in different directions to help them see in the case of a predator, and not just with their faces in the wind.
Bison appear to have a system where they do not all sleep simultaneously. They will sleep at different times, with some bison in the herd waking up when others go to sleep, typically within a few minutes.
Bison are prey animals, so they like to have a good viewpoint for predators, such as a pack of wolves that may attack. Due to their nature as prey animals, they often choose a hill where they can watch for predators and see the rest of the herd.
They will often choose to sleep in short grass over long grass to get a better view of their surroundings and hear better.
Are Bison Nocturnal or Diurnal?
Bison are active during the day, making them diurnal animals. They have poor eyesight, which would hinder them at night. Most animals were initially diurnal. Due to fewer predators at night, with them able to forage for food with less competition at night, more and more animals become nocturnal.
The bison does not have these problems. The food they eat is always available, day or night, and due to their large size, they do not have many natural predators.
How Long Does a Bison Live?
Bison can live up to twenty-five years in captivity and approximately fifteen years in the wild. Human hunting and natural predators can severely shorten their life expectancy in the wild.
The oldest bison in captivity was forty years old. In the wild, the oldest bison was thirty years and lived in a pasture in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
Anatomy
Several anatomical differences exist between the two subspecies of American bison, making both of these animals quite distinct.
Plains Bison
Plains bison are the smaller of the two subspecies. Bulls are larger than cows, as is common in most mammals.
Hump
One of the differences between both the plains bison and the wood bison is that the hump is at a different angle. The hump on the plains bison is at an angle of twenty-five degrees and less pronounced than the wood bison. The highest point of the hump is located over the front legs.
Hair
Plains bison has a pronounced line between the front hair and the animal’s back, usually after the front legs.
The hair on their heads is matted and almost afro. The hair on the head is very dense.
The beard on the plains bison is long and pear-shaped. The hair around the neck is extended with lengths reaching below the knees. A tuft of hair is also around the penis.
Tail
The tail of the plains bison is short and does not reach the knees of the animal.
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Wood Bison
Hump
The highest point of the hump is further forward than the plains bison and is ahead of the front legs.
The hump is at a more pronounced angle than the plains bison. The hump is at an angle of forty-three degrees.
Hair
The wood bison’s hair is in long strands, unlike the afro appearance of the plains bison.
Whereas the plains bison has a distinct line between the fur on the front of its body and the back, the wood bison does not.
They do not have much hair on their legs, unlike the plains bison’s long chaps, whose beard is thin and pointed. They do not have a tuft of hair on their penis.
The neck mane hair is very short and does not even reach the knee.
Tail
The wood bison has a longer tail than its cousin, with the end of the tail generally reaching the back knees.
Adaptations
Being prey animals, bison have several adaptations to help them to survive in the wild.
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Physical Adaptations
Smell
Bison have a very keen sense of smell, which they use to help protect themselves from predators. A bison can smell a predator up to 3 kilometers away, and they use this sense to stay away from predators.
Strength
One of the bison’s huge adaptations to the wild is its strength. Bison can live in almost any habitat and can use their power to adapt to the weather. Bison have weak legs that would otherwise hider them in snowy conditions, but the bison use their heads to shovel the snow in front of them, allowing them to travel to their destinations.
Bison also show their strength during the mating rut, with the larger bulls showing dominance over the females by beating off other bison using their heads and powerful necks.
Bison are seen as a symbol of strength to Native Americans and have also been used as a symbol on flags, coins, and seals. The bison has been used as a mascot for many schools, colleges, and universities due to its symbol of strength.
Size
Bison is the largest mammal in North America and the largest land animal on the continent.
Are Male Bison Bigger Than Females?
As with almost all mammals, male bulls are nearly always larger than female cows.
How Tall and Long is a Bison?
Wood bison are larger and heavier than their cousins, the plains bison. The highest point of a bison is the muscular shoulder hump. Bison can stand up to almost 2 meters (6.5 feet) feet tall at the shoulder. Bison are also long creatures, with a length of up to 3.5 meters (11.5 ft.)
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How Big was the Largest Bison?
Bison raised in captivity can grow more significantly than their wild counterparts due to their diet in captivity.
An enormous bison in the wild was recorded at a weight of 1,270 kg (2,800 lb), whereas the largest bison in captivity was a massive 1,724 kg (3,801 lb.)
How Big is a Bison Cub?
Bison calves can weigh up to 31 kg (70 lb) at birth.
How Heavy is a Bison?
Bison are large animals and can range in size and weight. A fully grown bison can be anywhere between 400 kg to 900 kg (880 to 1,980 lb.). American bison are smaller and lighter than European bison.
What Does a Bison Eat?
A bison’s diet is made up of grasses and sedges, but it will also eat lichen and berries. They will even eat a variety of twigs, shrubs, and herbs. Bison are ruminants and, like cows, have one stomach with four compartments. They use these compartments to extract all the nutrients from the food they eat.
How Much Water do Bison Drink?
Bison get a lot of their water intake from their diet of grasses and sedges but needs more water to survive. Bison only need to drink once daily, but their daily consumption can range from three to thirty gallons per day. The amount they need depends on their body size, their environment’s temperature, and how old they are.
Reproduction
The mating season of the bison starts in July through to September. Female bison are ready for reproduction, beginning between two to three years old.
Bison have a very distinct way of selecting their mate. They do this in a process called ‘tending.’ Males cut the female from the rest of the pack, continually staying between them. The ‘tend’ can last up to several days and as quickly as a few minutes.
Females that are not interested in the male will walk away and rejoin the herd. Fights can occur between males getting close to another male trying to tend to a female. Bison can lock horns, headbutt, and shove each other.
The length of pregnancy is roughly the same as a human being, nine months. Calves are given birth in an area away from the herd and will stay separate for a few days.
The calves are weaned from the mother by the time they are seven months old and will begin to develop their characteristic horns and shoulder humps.
Characteristics
American bison are large land mammals who live on the plains and prairies of the United States. They have a large muscular hump on their shoulders and small horns. They use their heads to move through the winter snow and find snow-covered vegetation to eat.
Bison live in herds of up to twenty, made up of calves and females. Males live in separate groups, up to twenty, but will come together with the females during the mating season. Herds of bison will have a dominant male or female.
Sustentation
Bison were once almost hunted to extinction and are currently on the IUCN red list of threatened species.
Bryan Harding is a member of the American Society of Mammalogists and a member of the American Birding Association. Bryan is especially fond of mammals and has studied and worked with them around the world. Bryan serves as owner, writer, and publisher of North American Nature.