History of the Great American Buffalo (BISON)
The American Buffalo is not a true buffalo. Bison is the scientific name and it belongs to the Bovine family of mammals, as do domestic cattle. We encourage the use of the term ‘bison’ to differentiate the American Buffalo from the Asian Water Buffalo and African Cape Buffalo.
Bison were the center of life of the Plains Indians, providing them with food, clothes, shelter and much of their
culture. Bison roamed the plains in numbers so great the early European explorers could not count them, describing them as, “Numbers-numberless”, and “the plains were black and appeared as if in motion”.
Estimates put the number of Bison at 40 million prior to their rapid decline in the middle to late 1800’s. The estimated number of Bison alive at the turn of the century was less than 1000 animals in the US and Canada. There are now an estimated 300,000 Bison in public and private herds in the US and Canada. Raising Bison is more than a hobby or a passing fad, it is a viable industry. There is a strong demand for Bison meat and by-products with prices that are consistently higher than cattle.
