By Kit Fischer
Utah can proudly brag that they manage the only wide-ranging, huntable population of bison in the lower 48 states. I know what you’re thinking—Utah…? Why Utah? They may have the best snow on earth, but they sure aren’t known for the best wildlife management. For a state whose motto is “Industry” and a place where hunting big game on public land is extremely limited, it seems an unlikely success.
In 1941, however, the Carbon Emery Wildlife Federation, a local rod and gun club, worked with the Utah Division of Wildlife to introduce 18 bison originating from Yellowstone National Park. The original 18 bison were released near Robbers Roost Ranch north of the Dirty Devil River on the San Rafael Desert.
Range: The nearly 300 bison residing in the area widely referred to as the Henry Mountains, graze largely on BLM lands. In fact, nearly 98% of the 300,000+ acres of suitable habitat is public land, resulting in minimal conflict with private landowners.
Map Image by USGS
Disease History: In 1962, brucellosis was detected in the Henry Mountain herd (then a population of 72 animals) most likely contracted from domestic cattle. The following year, 69 animals were captured, tested and inoculated. Animals suspected of brucellosis infection were marked and harvested by hunters. Since 1963, animals have been tested yearly through hunter harvest and the herd has been certified brucellosis free.
Livestock Grazing: Because the Henry Mountain bison herd is situated primarily on BLM lands, domestic livestock graze the same landscape as bison. Although there is considerable overlap between the diets of livestock and bison, forage has been allocated through a willing seller purchase of grazing rights to reduce conflict between the species.
Genetics: The Henry Mountain herd is recognized as a key population in maintaining the bison genome. Geneticists and biologists have recommended, however, that the population have at least 430 individuals to maintain a viable population and minimize the negative effects of inbreeding.
Recreational Opportunities: The Henry Mountains offers the only free-chase bison hunting opportunity in the lower 48. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity provides a unique experience for sportsmen to pursue bison in a truly wild landscape. Since 1950, nearly 2000 hunters have taken afield to pursue bison in the Henry Mountains. Non-residents are offered 10% of the available permits. Conservation permits are also available and sold at auction to the highest bidder (namely by Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife to pay for elk feeding and other “conservation work”).
Photo Credit Joel Webster
If There, Why Not Here? Is the Henry Mountain bison herd an appropriate model to use for current bison restoration efforts in Montana? For well over 50 years bison and cattle have coexisted in the Henry Mountains with little conflict or financial burden to the livestock industry. In addition, Utah offers the only fair-chase, Boone and Crockett eligible bison hunting experience in the lower 48. To add to the success of the Henry Mountain herd, in 2009 the Utah Division of Wildlife expanded bison habitat into a large roadless area in the Book Cliffs. All the while, Montana is still struggling to find a home for wild bison. Perhaps we have something to learn from the Beehive State after all.
As Montanans we rarely have to define what is wild—we’re surrounded by it. Many of us see deer in our backyards and swarms of songbirds in our feeders on a daily basis. Within a half hour from most of our homes we have clear, healthy streams, lush forests and prairies. But when it comes to Wildlife- the critters that inhabit these spaces, we’re often conflicted as to how wild an animal truly should really be. Or as more often is the question, how wild do we want Montana to be?
As Montanans we are the envy of the nation when it comes to wildlife. We’ve restored nearly every species in Montana that existed when Lewis and Clark ventured up the mighty Mo over 200 years ago. The only large mammal that hasn’t been restored to any of its native prairie habitat in Montana is the bison. In the past 75 years we’ve brought them all back—deer, antelope, elk, moose, bears and even wolves—but we stopped short from restoring the species that likely outnumbered all of the others combined.
Last month the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks started what may prove to be the crowning achievement of Montana’s wildlife restoration legacy. The department has formally committed to investigate whether there is room in Montana to restore a remnant of the bison’s legacy by finding a home for wild, wide-ranging bison in Montana. Last month public meetings were held in all corners of the state to gather information from the public to determine the scope of a statewide bison restoration plan.
From these meetings one fact became abundantly clear: Montana is the only place in the country where talking about restoring wild bison could happen. The northern great plains of MT and the Missouri River Breaks, including the 1.1 million acre Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge, is the best place in the state to restore wild bison – also the best place in North America. In a world where energy development and natural resources are a top priority, landscapes are changing in months, not decades. In Montana we are proud to say our public lands and our public wildlife have always been a top priority.
Millions of people visit our state annually to vacation in a place we are lucky to call home. Visitors are equally stunned and inspired by seeing the once endangered bald eagle now as common as an osprey. In Yellowstone Nat. Park, traffic jams occur daily as tourists gawk as bison graze unalarmed near the roadway. But how wild are these animals?
Yes, we already have bison in Montana: Yellowstone National Park, The National Bison Range and dozens of private herds across the state. But their wildness is confined by fences and in the case of Yellowstone- limited habitat and tough winters push them in great numbers into agricultural and populated areas. Is this the kind of wildness that we’ve come to accept in Montana?
In the Missouri Breaks we have an opportunity to start from scratch – with genetically pure, disease-free bison. We can put them in prime habitat, where they will tend to stay. And the CMR is a place where bison can be managed more successfully than in Yellowstone, where bison are bound in an endless controversy of disease and confusing multi-agency management. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks now has the ability to develop a program that will celebrate the wildness of this animal- managed similarly to our state’s other big game animals.
We all know that FWP will proceed carefully and deliberately with any bison restoration efforts. Landowners will be consulted, landscapes will be examined, and a public process will go forward where all concerned will be involved.
Working together, Montanans and our wildlife agency can resolve conflicts, solve problems make local economies more diverse and restore a wild, wonderful and useful animal to some of its native habitat. Working together Montanans can find ways to restore bison with minimal conflicts for local agriculture. People throughout America will salute Montana for its achievement.
By Kit Fischer
Free Roaming. What a difference a couple words can make. After driving 1500 miles attending MT Dept. of Fish, Wildlife and Park’s scoping meetings to evaluate a future home for wild bison in MT, I discovered the true meaning of “them be fightin’ words.” To most folks “free-roaming” incites images of wildlife not constrained by fences—able to move wherever and whenever they please across an open landscape. This doesn’t seem like such a bad concept for most of Montana’s wildlife, but bison don’t seem to fit the same mold. Wildlife in Montana doesn’t usually have to worry about trespassing or jumping cattle fences. But those two words also imply no limits—and understandably this worries a heck of a lot of people. In the context of bison, this could be interpreted that someday wild bison on the CMR could freely roam a hundred miles south and wreak havoc in downtown Billings.
So how do we place certain limits on where a wild animal can go? Much of the concern is the size of a herd. It is much more challenging to keep 5,000 animals in a designated landscape as opposed to 500. The romantic vision of hundreds of thousands of bison sprawled across the prairie is indeed history, but to restore a small remnant of that vision doesn’t seem so impossible. It is clear that bison don’t belong everywhere. In fact, very few places in Montana are suitable for bison restoration. Big animals need big landscapes. The 1.1 million acre Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge seems like as good a starting place as anywhere.
Photo by Kit Fischer
As bison will inevitably move outside of the wildlife refuge and pass through private land, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and non-profits will be eager partners in developing solutions with landowners to minimize economic impacts to agriculture and livestock operations. Ideas? Perhaps investigating alternate fencing options on private property that would dissuade bison from entering, while allowing other wildlife—deer, pronghorn and elk—which are much more widely tolerated by landowners—to move freely across the landscape.
Wide Ranging. So what happens if they don’t stop roaming? It is challenging to set imaginary lines in the sand marking the boundary of acceptable range. This obviously hasn’t worked very well in Yellowstone Park so why would it work near the CMR? For one, the habitat on the CMR is much different than Yellowstone. The lush Missouri river bottom sucks animals in far and wide—the further away one is from the river, the harsher the habitat. In addition, FWP would be afforded one tool that is not used in the park to manage wildlife; hunting. Hunters provide FWP the ability to manage the movements and sizes of individual populations. If a single bull decides to go on an extended vacation outside of the refuge and camps out on a grain field, FWP would have the ability to offer a depredation hunt or relocate that animal.
As hard as it is for many to consider hunting an ethical practice after the bison slaughter of the previous century, if we want to see them back as a wildlife species that means the safety of fences and National Parks will no longer apply. Bison will begin to re-wild themselves—and as Montanans we will have to re-discover our relationship with an animal that has spent the last 100 years being domesticated. Sportsmen working together with landowners and MT FWP have successfully restored all of the other big game species in Montana, let’s get this done with bison.
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