Bison or Buffalo?
While the terms “bison” and “buffalo” both commonly refer to the same animal - Bison bison - the terms have different origins and present-day uses.
Photo Credit: Animalia
It is impossible to discuss the North American bison without discussing North American Indigenous cultures. Indigenous peoples including the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Lakota, and many more had deep relationships with bison, hunting and using every part of the animal for food, clothing, lodging, and tools. But furthermore, bison are relatives; there is a deep spiritual connection between Indigenous cultures and bison.
Indigenous peoples in what is now the lower 48 states spoke over 300 languages, and bison had many names. The Cheyenne used 27 different words for a bison, “depending on its sex, age, or condition.”
However, when European colonizers arrived in North America, the bison reminded them of the Cape buffalo found in Africa; therefore, they called these animals “buffalo,” and the name stuck.
Today, the terms “bison” and “buffalo” have become interchangeable in North America, and either term is generally acceptable (like “antelope” vs. “pronghorn”).
Natural History of Bison
In the 1800s, bison were equally abundant - or even more so - than white-tailed deer at 30-60 million individuals on the land that is now called the United States (NPS, World Population Review). During the mid-1800s, bison populations dropped sharply as millions were killed by European colonizers; by the early 1900s, there were fewer than 1,000 bison.
There were a few reasons for this: first, Europeans began developing vast amounts of land for the construction of the transcontinental railroad. Second, bison were a source of food, hides, and other resources for both Europeans and Indigenous peoples; however, European colonizers did not have a relationship with bison, and harvested them unsustainably, causing extreme population decreases.
But the true reason for the European-led decline of bison populations was genocide. The relationship between Indigenous peoples and bison was well-known, so as bison - a primary food source and symbol of culture - were killed, Indigenous peoples were starved to death or until they were coerced into signing treaties and moving to reservations. This caused lasting social, psychological, physical, and economic harm to Tribes and Indigenous peoples and their descendants.
Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Bison Today
Today, recognizing the ecological and spiritual significance of bison, conservationists - led by Indigenous peoples - have worked to increase bison populations to approximately 45,000 individuals in Tribal and conservation herds, with more than half managed by Indigenous Nations.
Support for bison restoration is growing, as the Department of the Interior announced $1.5 million in funding to restore bison populations in January 2024; the funding will go to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota, and the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservation in Idaho.
By voting for initiatives such as these, we can support ecological restoration and Indigenous-led conservation.
More Resources
Listen to “Bisonology” from the Ologies podcast featuring host Alie Ward and guests/ bison experts “Dr. Ken Cannon, wildlife biologist Dr. Dan McNulty, [and] Alie's cousin Boyd and his wife Lila Evans of the Blackfeet Tribe, who are bison ranchers based in Northern Montana” (Ologies).
Visit IndigenousLed.org’s “Science” page and search for “bison”
