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Proceedings James W IVth International Wildlife Management Congress PROCEEDINGS James W. Cain III and Jason P. Marshal, Editors 9-12 July 2012 Durban, South Africa Proceedings of the IVth International Wildlife Management Congress Cooperative Wildlife Management Across Borders: Learning in the Face of Change Editors James W. Cain III Jason P. Marshal Copyright © 203 by The Wildlife Society All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by photostat, microform, retrieval system, or by any other means, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Distributed by The Wildife Society 540 Grosvenor Lane Bethesda, MD 2084 ISBN 0- ISSN 0- 9-12 July 2012 Durban, South Africa Kohl et al. • Future of Bison Conservation WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF BISON (n = 57) have <,000 individuals, and 8% (n = 5) CONSERVATION? are managed on areas of >2,000 km2. Based on these data, new questions have been posed regarding the direction of bison restoration at the continental scale. MICHEL T. KOHL, Boone and Crockett Wildlife Taking into account challenges associated with bison Conservation Program, University of Montana, management (e.g., disease transmission, genetic intro- 32 Campus Drive, Missoula, MT 59812 USA gression of domestic cattle, legal designation of bison, availability of restoration sites), we examine whether JEROD A. MERKLE, Département de Biologie, the current model of numerous small, confined bison Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, populations represents ecological recovery of bison. 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC, G1V We then outline recent conservation initiatives to dem- OA6 Canada onstrate that a decision on the future objectives of bi- son conservation needs to be addressed. PAUL R. KRAUSMAN, Boone and Crockett Wildlife Conservation Program, University of Montana, KEY WORDS: bison, Bison bison, conservation chal- 32 Campus Drive, Missoula, MT 59812, USA lenges, conservation, management, restoration KYRAN KUNKEL, Wildlife Biology Program, Uni- Proceedings of the IVth International Wildlife versity of Montana, 32 Campus Drive, Missoula, Management Congress: 1-8, 2013 MT 59812, USA Plains bison (Bison bison; hereafter referred to as bi- KEITH AUNE, Wildlife Conservation Society North son) historically ranged across North American from American Program, 301 North Willson Avenue, the Rocky Mountains to the eastern seaboard and the Bozeman, MT 59714, USA plains of Canada to the northern reaches of Mexico (Reynolds et al. 982, Danz 997). In total, bison C. CORMACK GATES, Faculty of Environmental resided in 4 Canadian provinces, 42 U.S. states, and 5 Design, University of Calgary, 2500 University Mexican states, an area of >9,000,000 km2, thus en- Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada compassing the largest distribution of any indigenous large herbivore in North America (Figure ; Gates et al. 200b). Throughout the Great Plains, bison in- SAM. D. FUHLENDORF, Department of Natural teracted with a host of species including pronghorn Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma (Antilocapra americana), elk (Cervus canadensis), State University, 008C Agricultural Hall, Stillwa- deer (Odocoileus spp.), prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.), ter, OK 74078, USA wolves (Canis lupus), grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) and grassland bird species through ecosystem alterations ABSTRACT: The conservation of the plains bison (Coppock et al. 983, Krueger 986, Knopf 996, (Bison bison) is considered one of the greatest conser- Freese et al. 2007). Bison also play critical roles in vation success stories in North America. Although the grassland ecology through the facilitation of vegeta- historic distribution of bison (plains and wood bison tive heterogeneity (Knapp et al. 999, Fuhlendorf et al. [B.b. athabascae]) was larger than any other indig- 2008). Wallowing activities can lead to standing water enous large herbivore in North America, market hunt- (Knapp et al. 999), which in turn supports numer- ing and competition with the livestock industry reduced ous plant species (Collins and Uno 983, Polley and the plains bison to ≤1,000, with only 25 free-ranging Wallace 986) and provides habitat for prairie amphib- animals left in the world by 902. Through the coop- ians (Bragg 940, Corn and Peterson 996). Vegeta- eration of private individuals, non-profit organizations, tion communities are affected by bison through graz- and the federal governments of the U.S. and Canada, ing, physical disturbance, nutrient cycling, and seed bison were saved from extinction and are now scat- dispersal (McHugh 958, Knapp et al. 999). These tered throughout much of their historical range, num- activities influence grassland heterogeneity, supporting bering >500,000 individuals. Despite the numerical prairie obligate species in the tall, mixed, and short- recovery of the species, recent questions have surfaced grass prairies (Powell 2006, Fuhlendorf et al. 2008, regarding the true success of this effort as <2,000 Gates et al. 200a). plains bison (<5% of all bison) are managed within Prior to the arrival of Europeans in North Amer- conservation herds (n = 62). Thirteen percent (n = ica, the estimates of bison numbers ranged from 5 8) of herds are outside of their historical range, 92% to 00 million individuals (Dary 989, Shaw 995), IVth International Wildlife Management Congress Figure . Original ranges of plains bison (light gray area) and wood bison (dark gray area). Permission granted by Potter et al. 200. History of bison in North America. Page 7 in Gates et al. 200a) however most estimates range from 30 to 60 million (Coder 975, Danz 997). In Canada, federal conser- bison (Seton 929, McHugh 972, Lott 2002). Fol- vation began in 907 with the purchase of the privately lowing European settlement, bison numbers declined owned Pablo-Allard herd from Montana, U.S. (Freese rapidly as a result market hunting by European set- et al. 2007). tlers (Hornaday 887, Isenberg 2000) in addition to These conservation efforts increased the bison competition with domestic livestock (McHugh 972, population, which doubled between 888 and 902 Dary 989, Danz 997, Isenberg 2000). As a result, (Coder 975) and increased steadily to approximately <,000 bison were in North America by 890 (Hor- 30,000 by the 970s (McHugh 972). Of the 30,000 naday 887, Seton 929) and wild, free-ranging bison bison, half resided in conservation herds (Freese et al. were extirpated from Canada (Freese et al. 2007) and 2007), defined as bison populations managed primar- nearly extirpated from the U.S. (Meagher 973). ily for conservation rather than commercial produc- In the U.S., the loss of large bison herds led to tion (Boyd 2003). In the 980s, commercial bison the first major conservation movement to preserve a production increased, resulting in >500,000 bison in species on the brink of extinction (Coder 975). These North America today; yet, <5% of bison reside in efforts were led by private individuals who established conservation herds (Boyd 2003). In fact, the number small herds throughout the Great Plains (Boyd 2003). of individuals in conservation herds has remained rela- Private herds would later form the foundation for most tively stagnant since the 930s, and today only 20,504 of the public herds (Boyd 2003). The second conser- individuals are located in 62 conservation herds (Boyd vation effort was led by the American Bison Society et al. 200). In other words, despite the dramatic in- (formed 1905) who influenced the U.S. Congress to es- crease in bison during the past 20 years, the number tablish public conservation herds throughout the U.S. of free-ranging wild bison has lagged far behind. 2 Kohl et al. • Future of Bison Conservation A further examination of these conservation herds CONSERVATION CHALLENGES provokes questions regarding the ecological effective- Domestication ness of bison restoration at a landscape scale. Of the Domestication may permanently alter the bison genetic 62 conservation herds, 3% (n = 8) are located outside pool while producing significant changes to morphol- the historical range of bison and 92% (n = 57) consist ogy, physiology, and behavior as a result of anthropo- of <,000 individuals, a population size considered to genic selection and the loss of natural selection (Freese be genetically viable over the long term (Gates and El- et al. 2007). Within the commercial herds, cattle hus- lison 200). Furthermore, only 8 % (n = 5) of herds bandry practices are common resulting in non-random are located on landscapes >2,000 km2 (Gates and Elli- selection of traits leading to docility, reduced agility, son 200) and 6% do not contain breeding age males. and growth performance while also altering sex ratio Ecologically, wolves are the only effective predator of and age structure (Gates et al. 200a). The elimination adult bison, yet they are associated with only 0% of of mature males further influences mate competition conservation herds (Gates and Ellison 200). and natural selection (Gates et al. 200a). Domesti- As a result, conservationists are questioning cated bison may also pose significant issues to bison whether bison are facing an ecological extinction event conservation if commercial animals establish cattle (Freese et al. 2007). To reverse this trend, the Wild- introgression within conservation herds when inten- life Conservation Society designed a foundation for tionally or accidently mixed with conservation herds bison restoration through the Vermejo Statement (Red- (Boyd et al. 200). Furthermore, increased commer- ford and Fearn 2007) which states, “Over the
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