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Buffalo - Bison



The two species of bison alive today are the European bison (or Wisent) and the American Bison. The bison is often incorrectly called the buffalo, but this name belongs properly only to the Old World animal called the Cape Buffalo or Water Buffalo.

Bison live in herds, in the past numbering thousands of individuals, but they are now much smaller. The smallest group is a family of a bull, a cow and her offspring. The cow is the leader of the family group.

Bison are most active during morning and evening. They are fond of wallowing in mud and rubbing themselves against trees and boulders.



Appearance


The American bison has a longer coat on the neck, shoulders and forelimbs than the European wisent. The horns are smaller and less curved and the hindquarters are smaller. There are two distinct varieties of American bison. The plains bison of the United States is smaller and lighter in colour than the wood bison of Canada but has a heavier head and hump.

Despite its enormous and clumsy appearance, the bison is surprisingly agile and sure-footed creature. They can also swim very well. Bulls can grow to 3 m or 3.7 m (10 or 12 feet) in length and can be as tall as 1.8 m (6 feet) at the shoulder, weighing 1360.5 kg (3000 lbs). Cows are about 2.4 m (8 feet) long, up to 1.5 m (5 feet) high at the shoulder and weigh up to 498.9 kg (1100 lbs). The hair on the head, neck, shoulders and forelegs is long and shaggy. The forehead is broad and is flanked by two short, curving horns that are carried by both sexes. The hair on the head can grow up to 30 centimetres (1 foot) long and forms a beard on the chins of the bulls.



Habitat


When Europeans first settled in North America, bison could be found from Northern Canada as far south as the border of Mexico and across much of the continent. They were apparently increasing in numbers and it is thought that they would have spread through the passes of the Rockies and onto the plains of the Pacific Coast.

As it happened, they did not get the chance to spread, for with the coming of Europeans, they were hunted so relentlessly that they became nearly extinct. One of the grievances that the native Indians had against the white men was that they had driven away or exterminated the bison, which, for many tribes, formed their mainstay. The Plains Indians used the bison for just about everything. They used the bison meat, both fresh and dried for later use, hides for clothing, bedding, tents and canoes, dung for fuel, bones and hide and sinews for weapons, tools and utensils. Not surprisingly, the bison appeared in the Indians' religion as a powerful figure to be worshipped! The future of the North American Bison is now more secure by being preserved through game farms and reserves like Marineland.


Diet


The North American bison is herbivorous, feeding mainly on grass. They make seasonal migrations of hundreds of miles to find the best feeding areas, which vary with the season. At Marineland, their main diet consists of hay, grain (corn, oats, and barley), and water. They are also supplied with a salt block and minerals.


Reproduction and Offspring


Mating takes place from July to September. The males in a herd fight each other and there is often a "harem-master" who monopolizes sexual activities. However, solitary bulls who are driven out by a dominant bull, are now known to take some part in mating, along with the dominant bull.

Gestation lasts about nine months, the calves being born from April to June. The cow leaves the herd to drop her calf and returns when it is able to walk. The whole herd assists in the defense of the calves, whose only enemy apart from man is the wolf. The calves are nursed for a year and stay with their mothers until they are sexually mature at three years.

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