TextProgress to Date: Bison RestorationAmerican Prairie's growing and healthy bison herd is the result of a decade of dedication and hard work by collaborators, scientists, veterinarians, donors, and staff. At a glance, here's how the herd has progressed: Bison Import History Year Number of Bison Source 2005 16 Wind Cave National Park, SD 2006 20 Wind Cave National Park, SD 2007 22 Wind Cave National Park, SD 2008 10 TNC Broken Kettle Grasslands Preserve, IA 2010 93 Elk Island National Park, Edmonton, Alberta 2012 72 Elk Island National Park, Edmonton, Alberta 2014 73 Elk Island National Park, Edmonton, Alberta 2005: First Bison Introduced to American Prairie On a cold and rainy night, not long past midnight on October 20, 2005, 16 bison stepped back onto the Montana prairie after an absence of more than 120 years. APR and World Wildlife Fund staff watched as the bison began to graze in their holding pasture, acclimating to their new home before being turned out onto American Prairie. Several of these bison were pregnant cows. After much waiting, the American Prairie Reserve Manager was proud to report the births of five baby bison on the prairie in April 2006. 2006-2009: A Growing Herd From 2006 to 2009, the herd continued to grow with the addition of new arrivals from Wind Cave National Park and The Nature Conservancy of South Dakota. Additional calves have been born on American Prairie each spring since 2006. 2012-2014 In early 2010, we greatly increased the size of our herd with the addition of 94 bison from Elk Island National Park in Alberta, Canada. The ancestors of these bison originally came from Montana and were part of the Pablo herd, the largest herd of bison left in North America in the early 1900s, after they were largely extirpated from the Great Plains. The Pablo herd was privately owned until the Canadian government purchased the bison in 1907. The return of these bison to Montana continues to be a historic homecoming – 71 additional bison calves were transferred from Elk Island to American Prairie in early 2012 and another 73 calves were relocated in early 2014. 2012 Bison Transfer from Canada's Elk Island National Park to American Prairie Reserve Video of 2012 Bison Transfer from Canada's Elk Island National Park to American Prairie Reserve 2015-2016 With rapid population growth of the herd, we knew we would quickly reach the carrying capacity of the Sun Prairie unit and started the Environmental Assessment process to expand the bison herd onto the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) allotments. The carrying capacity of Sun Prairie was reached in early 2016. While going through the Environmental Assessment process with the BLM, we expanded the herd to the deeded portion of the Sun Prairie North unit in early 2016. In 2017 and 2018, we also expanded the herd onto the deeded portions of the Dry Fork and White Rock units. During these expansions, a portion of the surplus bison were distributed to Tribal, Agency and other conservation partners marking the first time that a large number of American Prairie bison were able to be distributed to start new herds and improve the genetics of others. 2019-Present American Prairie is continuing to work though the Environmental Assessment process with the Bureau of Land Management and hopes to expand bison herds onto the public land allotments in the coming years. We are proud to continue to distribute bison to tribal and conservation partners, and to exchange bison with nearby tribes. With an eye to the future, we are also reassessing and developing our long-term vision for bison expansion, genetic diversification, and public benefit at American Prairie.
What's Next for Bison on the Prairie?The American Prairie bison herd is already ten years old! What does the future look like? Read more about What's Next for Bison on the Prairie?
Bison Across the Border: Your Questions AnsweredFind answers to common questions about American Prairie's transfer of bison from Canada's Elk Island National Park. Read more about Bison Across the Border: Your Questions Answered
7 Generations and 130 Years Later, A Circle Is CompleteThe calves' journey to this area started 130 years ago. In 1873, Samuel Walking Coyote brought six bison to northwest Montana after a hunting trip on the east side of the state. Read more about 7 Generations and 130 Years Later, A Circle Is Complete