This week, government scientists will be driving a small number of wild buffalo from Yellowstone National Park north into the valleys of Gallatin National Forest in Montana. The 25 buffalo chosen are part of the last purebred herd in the country, with less than 4,000 remaining in the herd. The animal that once roamed free in the west with numbers in the tens of millions in the early part of the 20th century sought refuge from systematic hunting in Yellowstone National Park. Over time, the population has slowly grown but the deep snow drives the buffalo away from the park in the winters.
This decision is seen as a cease-fire between multilple groups: conservationists, livestock producers, and wildlife managers. Each winter the deep snow drives the buffalo into the lowlands in search of food, where livestock producers have to defend their cattle from the brucellosis-carrying bison. Brucellosis can cause spontaneous abortion in cows, and Montana maintains a brucellosis-free status with the USDA, allowing them to ship meat over state lines without additional testing. The bison chosen for this move have been tested and are brucellosis free.
The goal is for this small group of bison to grow into an independent small herd of 100 or so. As the herd grows, they will be allowed to migrate each year between the Gallatin National Forest and Yellowstone National Park. Ultimately, the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission hopes to designate a wider range of wildlife area for bison, but this proposal has been met with varied reaction from interest groups connected with the issue.
Read more on the issue here.
[...] an update to our previous story about the wild bison allowed to roam outside of [...]