The American Bison

by Phillip Chavez, Front Range Tribal Outreach Coordinator

The American Bison is a keystone species that was almost eradicated from the landscape in America in less than 80 years by the United States and its citizens. The number of bison on the ground in North America was estimated to be between 20-60 million between the 1600’s and 1800’s. In 1884, there were an estimated 335 bison left in North America. There are many unjust reasons this was done, but one of the main reasons was to eradicate Buffalo as a food source for Native Americans who depended on the Bison for survival. This genocide of the Bison was a direct correlation to the genocide of Native Americans, both physicaly and culturally. The common philosophy at the time was to “Kill the Indian, Save the man”, and in turn kill the Bison and replace them with non-native species of cattle. This perception of Indigenous people as an “issue” that must be changed or eradicated has not come very far in our history. This is seen throughout our history, such as Native Americans not being granted freedom of religion until 1978. It was previously a federal offense to have a sweat lodge ceremony. We can also point to the forced sterilization of Native American women and women of color all the way into the early 1980’s.

By understanding the relationship between Bison and the Indigenous people of America, we can also begin to understand the importance of bringing back Bison to the landscape – for both ecological and cultural reasons. In many ways the return of the Bison has been accompanied by the return of cultural ways such as language revitalization and traditional ways of knowing. As this new time of change is coming, we can begin to heal from this historical trauma but also begin to utilize Indigenous knowledge to heal the environment and rekindle our role as stewards of the land.

At Trees, Water and People, we see the value of the Bison, both ecologically and culturally. That is why we have chosen to work with Colorado State University (CSU) in animal genetics and reproduction but also with the Native American Culture Center (NACC) and the Native community in Northern Colorado. We recently have been supporting the bison herd co-managed by CSU and the City of Fort Collins. With the help of Dr. Jen Barfield, her work to provide Yellowstone Bison embryos that are genetically replicable and disease free are being delivered to Indigenous Nations around the US. We are also in the process of supporting the NACC by funding work study positions for students to work with Dr. Barfield on the Bison project. We hope this will increase the interest and number of Indigenous students in the Bison reintroduction field.