This spring the bison
became the ‘national mammal’ of the United States. I don’t think they could have made a better
choice, and since I’ve just come back from watching many, many bison I thought
I’d just let my thoughts about bison meander a little.
Bison are such awesome creatures, well deserving of their
new honor. Sad to say I have to agree
with Ben Franklin when he lamented the choice of a bald eagle as our national
bird. It’s a handsome creature, but well
known for having a special fondness for carrion and fish. Bison, on the other hand, are a big magnificent
symbol of our American West and far more interesting than when seen at first
glance.
All too often ‘first glance of a bison’ in Yellowstone is a
herd plodding down the road, blocking traffic.
When we are lucky, the delay in only a few minutes and gives everyone an
up close peek at the huge beasties. Dale
and I have been delayed 45 minutes because the bison were crossing the long
bridge just east of Mammoth. The bison
were heading west and we wanted to go east.
When we returned in the evening, bison were on the bridge again. Another 45 minutes passed while they headed
east and we wanted to go west.
The worst bison jam I ever saw was just before Memorial Day
a year ago. A small herd had stopped
traffic just when cars were pouring into the park for the weekend. We were heading out of the park and got past
the small herd without any difficulty, but cars coming in were literally bumper
to bumper for miles – literally miles!
Traffic was moving so slowly that many people got out of their cars and
walked ahead while one person stayed with their car to inch forward.
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| The lower part of the sketch is what it looks like when just a bison cow walks past inches from our car.
There is magic to a good bison jam if you are fortunate to
be amongst the bison, and not way behind in the line of cars. Their hooves make a soft plopping sound on
the asphalt and they have a mellow grunt as they plod along. From the safety of the car we get to look
right into the bison’s eyes from just inches away.
I never worry about bison when I’m in the car. Occasionally a bison has taken offense to a
vehicle and gored it, but I suspect the action was provoked. When we’re on foot we treat bison, especially
bulls, with a great deal more respect.
They have a reputation for being unpredictable. Bison injure more people in Yellowstone than
any other animal. The problem has become
especially serious in recent years because people take selfies with bison.!
This year we got out of the car near Tower Junction to looks
for birds, flowers … whatever. Three
bulls were across the road, probably 200 yards away. Dale and I wandered our separate ways for a
bit and then, just as I joined Dale, we realized one of the bulls had crossed
the road and appeared to be interested in us.
Curiosity probably. The empty
Roosevelt Lodge corrals where nearby and seemed a good place to duck into. Gates are left open during the winter so
animals wanting to get in can easily get back out and don’t just crash through
the wooden fences.
We entered one corral – the bull was still coming. We went through the open gate and into
another corral. The bull was in the
first corral by then. We were in the
third corral by the time he was in the second.
Fortunately his tail was still down (good sign) and he was just plodding
along. The third corral didn’t have an
easy exit, so we ducked through the pole fence.
Fortunately the bull had satisfied his curiosity. We headed for the car just a little
rattled.
When we first arrive in Yellowstone the bison seem to be
constantly on the move. Grass is short
and it’s hard to get a belly full. Bison
are known for being ‘light grazers,’ i.e. they constantly shift to a new patch
of grass and thus are easy on the land.
Once there is a decent amount of grass they can spend more of their day
resting … and after calving the cows make a point of resting often, giving the
little fellas a chance to recharge their batteries. Once the calves wake up and nurse, the herd
is on the move again.
Bison calves are amazing balls of energy. They are nursing within an hour after birth,
and moving with the herd that same day.
Often the cow falls behind when she gives birth, but as soon as possible
she rejoins her group. I remember well
watching a cow and little calf crossing the wide Lamar Valley and river. The cow knew just where to enter the water. Much of the river has too steep a cut-bank
for a calf, but she crossed where the river would carry the calf downstream to
a gentle slope. Once across it was even
more obvious she knew just where she wanted to go. I hadn’t paid attention to a small herd on
the far side of the Lamar River. She went
right to it. Twenty minutes after
crossing the river the other cows were gathered around and all seemed to be
greeting the first calf of the season.
Bison seem to have four speeds: resting, grazing, traveling and finally flat
out running. This herd came pouring over
a rise, just far enough away for us to be safe.
The sun was low and shadows getting long. The herd headed down a slope toward us, and
then into the shallows of the Lamar River.
It was a good place to cross. The
river had threaded out with a cobblestone island in the middle. Water splashed and sparkled in the late
sun. The cows didn’t need to actually
swim, but for a short distance the calves were treading water. When in really deep water cows keep their
calves alongside, on the upstream side, thus helping to control how far
downstream the calves are swept. But this
was an easy crossing.
Once safely across, the herd kept traveling. Within just a few minutes they were half a
mile away and still going.
* * *
The bison is an ancient beast. They
flow with the wind when running wild and free -- hooves pound; tails are high; dust
flies. Whether they are close by or far
off, my heart runs with them. Bison are
truly a symbol of what is best in our magnificent land.
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