Bison in Yellowstone National Park. Photo from Daniel Mayer via Wikipedia
Tribal, state and federal officials are meeting today to discuss bison management plans at Yellowstone National Park. The National Park Service is seeking to kill or remove about 1,000 animals this winter, according to the agenda for the meeting, which takes place in Montana. The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes are proposing a smaller number, anywhere from 800 to 900, according to the document. Removals are allowed as some of the bison leave the park in search of food and in response to environmental and other conditions within park boundaries. About 5,000 are living in Yellowstone -- the peak population is considered to be about 3,000. Several tribes retain treaty rights to hunt bison in the park. They are looking to remove about 300 animals this winter, the Associated Press reported. Two tribes obtained transfers of bison to their reservations in the past but the idea is highly controversial in Montana because ranchers, farmers and beef industry producers fear threats to their livestock. The herd in Yellowstone represents the last genetically isolated species of bison in the United States. The rest of the population was decimated by non-tribal hunters. Get the Story:
Yellowstone park proposes killing 1,000 bison this winter (AP 11/18)
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