Buffalo Are Back in Montana to Stay Whether You Like It or Not

The tension in the air was palpable.  The biologist from the American Prairie Reserve, was getting death glares and no mercy from a frustrated group of ranchers, intent on knowing the truth about American Prairie Reserve's plan for free-roaming bison and land acquisition.  To his credit, he remained calm, even when the debate became more intense.  The ranchers asked the tough questions:

• What if the bison break through your fence onto my land?  
• What about cross breeding?  
• What is the potential danger of Brucellosis (a transferable bacteria that causes involuntary abortion in cows, elk and bison)? 
• How will your buying up all the land affect my land and lease rates?  

The biologist answered each question calmly and by the end of the seminar many ranchers seemed to have more respect for him, even if they didn't agree with him.  The irony of the situation was that the room was filled with Native American ranchers from Fort Belknap, whose ancestors depended on Buffalo for everything.  Now this outsider is trying to bring back their proverbial "general store" and it poses a threat to their current way of life as ranchers.  Ironic.....but not in a funny way.

The subject of buffalo has been an incredibly hot-button issue in Montana lately and for good reason.  Bison related headlines have been frequent: "Tourist Puts Bison Calf in Car to Keep Warm", "Outside Environmental Group Buys Land for Free Roaming Bison along the Missouri", "The Return of the Blackfeet Bison", "Protests against Yellowstone Bison Hunts", "Bison Named National Mammal" and the list goes on.  In all reality, when you consider the implications for tourism, sportsman, tribal members and ranchers, the return of bison to Montana effects all Montanans.  One thing is for sure, bison are back and they are here to stay, one way or another.  The forces behind bison ranching and bison as wildlife outside of Yellowstone are freight trains, already in motion and about all you can do is steer them.

The market for bison meat seems almost inexhaustible and the number of bison ranchers has been steadily increasing for the last several years.  Bison are a good ecological fit for much of Montana.  (Go figure! Ever wonder why God didn't put cows here first?!)  As mentioned in a previous blog, ranchers in the US are the most productive in the world, but most are not profitable.  One of the best ways to increase profitability is to match what you're raising with the free natural resources you already have.  Bison require less outside feed inputs than cows, even if they both calve in May (the calving time most synced with natural forage).  And most cattle ranchers calve February through April when labor and feed inputs required are much higher.  Granted, fencing for bison and moving them is more difficult but overall they require far less labor and far less outside inputs.  Raising bison is an excellent example of fitting your enterprise to your natural resources and many bison ranches are making a profit in situations where cattle ranches wouldn't. 


Make no mistake about it, there will be wild bison outside of Yellowstone.  The alliance of environmental groups, tribal governments and tourist related businesses that see profit potential will be impossible to stop completely. The issue of free-roaming bison will be hotly contested in ag communities throughout the state for years to come.  Federal and state agencies will have to make decisions on how wild bison are dealt with and Brucellosis will continue to be one of the main issues.  It won't look like it did before Montana had fences, but there will be areas where wild bison roam.  Sportsman (like myself) will moan as public access to land along the Missouri becomes strained.  Many bison will probably be shot on private land, illegally and legally.  Fences will be destroyed and a few more tourists will get launched into the air by an angry cow buffalo, but eventually people will adjust and life will go on.  It will look different, but the animal that was almost completely exterminated 150 years ago is back and here to stay.  That's True Montana!