Wildlife Promise » Garrit Voggesser

Amazing Photos and Video of the Return of Wild Bison to Tribal Lands

Garrit Voggesser — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:27:07 +0000

More than a century after they disappeared, wild bison once again roam Montana’s Northern Great Plains. On March 19, 2012, more than 60 bison were loaded onto trucks near Yellowstone National Park and driven to Montana’s Fort Peck Reservation for release into the wild. National Wildlife Federation, in partnership with the Assiniboine and Sioux tribes, spent decades working on an agreement with the state of Montana to make this happen. We envisioned a future when Yellowstone bison, the last genetically pure, free-roaming, wild bison population in the U.S., could provide animals to establish new herds across the West. That vision has now been fulfilled.

These photos and the video below capture the welcome home ceremony.

The Round Up

Bison bound for release at Fort Peck, MT are herded together.

“Tribal people have a deep historical, cultural, traditional and spiritual connection to bison that stretches back thousands of years. Yellowstone bison have a special status for us because they are the last wild, free-ranging herd with no cattle genes. The well-being of the bison and the tribes are intertwined.” ~ Mike Fox, Fort Belknap tribal council member

Driving the Bison Home

Jim & Lexi Marsh prepare to drive one of the trailers with bison bound for Fort Peck, MT.

“Special thank you to all who worked to make this happen!! You did good!!!” ~ Comment from Linda S. on National Wildlife Federation’s Facebook wall

The Bison are Released

Bison leaving the trailer at Fort Peck, MT.

“By restoring wild bison to tribal lands, we’re also restoring a landscape, a habitat, one that supports a plethora of wildlife. Simultaneously, we’re helping to re-establish Native peoples’ cultural and historic connections to wildlife and the land.” ~Garrit Voggesser, NWF’s National Director, Tribal Partnerships.

Bison leaving the trailer at Fort Peck, MT.

“The thunder of bison on the move is a huge victory. After more than two decades of work, the National Wildlife Federation and our tribal partners are celebrating the return of an iconic wildlife species to the Great Plains. The return of these wild bison to tribal lands fills a big gap in the plains ecosystem and a longtime absence in Native American culture.” ~Larry Schweiger, National Wildlife Federation president and CEO

Bison being released at Fort Peck, MT.

“After seven years of fighting, it’s nice to see them home. We’ll be able to quell people’s fears about them getting out (of the fences). A year from now, people will look and say, `Yeah, it does work.’”-Robbie Magnan, Fort Peck’s Fish and Game Department Director

The Pipe Ceremony

Tribal drum ceremony

“This means everything to us. We’ve been separated from these majestic animals and now they’re here. We’re the buffalo people, tatanka oyate. Without the bison, none of us would be here.” ~Stoney Anketell, a member of the Fort Peck tribal executive board

Video of the Bison Release:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Help support National Wildlife Federation’s ongoing work to bring wild bison back to tribal lands >>

Wild Bison Homecoming for Indian Tribes

Garrit Voggesser — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 00:00:44 +0000

Bison on the Fort Peck Reservation, credit: Ted Wood/The Story Group for NWF

By the turn of the 19th-century, less than one hundred of the original 30 million bison remained in North America. This iconic American species, it seemed, was doomed to extinction at the hands of over-hunting and the westward migration of European-Americans. While the American cavalry engaged tribal warriors in epic battles throughout the Great Plains and American West, so too did Americans wage war on bison.

As American Indians battled to protect their lives and cultures, they also fought to preserve their historical and cultural connections to buffalo. A pair of Indians from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in northwest Montana rounded up some of those bison to save them, and by the early 20th century the bison had grown to a herd of several hundred animals.

These bison were transferred to Canadian national parks and to ranchers in the U.S. Some eventually became seed animals for the Yellowstone herd. American Indians had saved bison from the precipice and contributed to the creation of what would become America’s only wild, genetically pure, free-roaming herd of bison. Today, the historical relationship between buffalo and American Indians comes full circle, as the bison return home to their brethren that saved them.

NWF is proud to have served alongside our tribal partners to protect and restore bison over the last couple of decades. This week, we are gratified to see the wild bison’s homecoming for Indian tribes at Fort Peck and Fort Belknap in northeastern Montana. We hope this is just the beginning of restoration of the creature know as the monarch of the plains to tribal and public lands across the West.

As a tribal partner told us:

You’ve been working to save the bison for the last twenty years, we’ve been praying for this for 120.

It is only fitting that during the very week of their return to tribal lands, NWF is also celebrating bison as one of the extraordinary species of it’s 74th annual National Wildlife Week. We know that a a better understanding and appreciation of these iconic creatures will help us continue to preserve them for our children’s future.

Wild Bison to Return Home to Tribal Lands

Garrit Voggesser — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 18:42:58 +0000

Yellowstone Bison, credit GVoggesser/NWF

More than a dozen years ago, I manned a booth in Yellowstone National Park to inform people about conservation-based solutions for protecting bison. Visitors from across the United States and around the world all had the same question: Why are buffalo being shot when they leave the park?

Since the mid-1990s, the National Wildlife Federation has been working to ensure people won’t have to ask that question. We believe restoration to other landscapes is a better management strategy to resolve livestock-wildlife conflicts. We envisioned a future when Yellowstone bison, the last genetically pure, free-roaming, wild bison population in the U.S., could provide animals to establish new herds across the West.

In 1997, we signed a memorandum of understanding with the Intertribal Bison Cooperative, the first ever conservation agreement between an environmental organization and a tribal organization, to advocate for the return of wild bison to tribal lands. NWF and the tribes shared a common vision – restoring wild bison to their historical habitat and restoring Native peoples’ cultural connections to bison. But the political opposition to the return of the bison seemed insurmountable.

A Victory for Conservation and Tribes

Room to Roam, credit Stephen C. Torbit/NWF

This winter, after 20 years, the tribes and NWF succeeded in convincing the state of Montana to transfer 68 Yellowstone bison to the Fort Peck and Fort Belknap Tribes.

This has been one of the hardest nuts to crack in wildlife conservation history. Many other large mammal species that had depleted in numbers have been restored, but not bison. By restoring bison to tribal lands and other former habitats across the country, we’re also revitalizing a landscape, habitat, and a diversity of wildlife. Simultaneously, we’re helping to re-establish Native peoples’ cultural and historic connections to wildlife and the land.

This is a win-win proposition for the tribes, the state of Montana, and the millions of Americans nationwide who want bison back where they belong. The return of wild bison to tribal lands is a major milestone in efforts to restore an iconic North American species to the landscape and restore an important element of Native American culture.

This spring, we will welcome the bison home.