38 Nebraskaland • January-February 2020
Bison Association, there are now about 360,000 bison in North
America, about half of which are on private ranches and farms.
While most of today's bison are in captive populations,
there's still something emotionally stirring about seeing them
in person – especially when they're surrounded by grassland
that stretches from horizon to horizon. Perhaps more than
any other prairie animal, bison evoke feelings of wildness and
nostalgia within us. Grasslands without bison can be beautiful
and inspiring, but grasslands with bison are on another level.
Bison and Cattle
Herds of large grazing animals have always played a
crucial role in the ecology of grasslands. Historic bison
herds modifi ed habitat structure for animals and growing
conditions for plants in ways that sustained a broad diversity
of both across the Plains. Today, both cattle and bison can
fi ll those roles, though there are some important diff erences
between the species.
Bison need to consume large amounts of vegetation to
sustain their massive bodies, eating as much as 20 pounds
or more of grass per day. The majority of their diet consists of
grasses, but bison also eat a variety of wildfl owers to satisfy
their constantly shifting nutritional needs. Cattle have
similar diets when given the opportunity to forage wherever
they wish (as opposed to being squeezed into a series of small
paddocks). However, cattle tend to make broad-leaved plants
a slightly higher percentage of their diet than bison do.
Bison at sunrise at The Nature Conservancy's Niobrara Valley Preserve. Unlike cattle, whose loud bawling can be heard from
far away, bison vocalizations consist of soft grunts and "huff s."
