Tribes propose bold change in how bison are managed across the US: 'It's about our relationship with them'

A tribe in Wyoming is advocating for a change in the way bison are treated on the plains that could lead to a new relationship between the once-endangered species and Indigenous people.

In April, the Eastern Shoshone voted to reclassify bison (or buffalo, as tribes refer to them) as wildlife instead of livestock, according to The Associated Press and Grist. The Northern Arapaho, who share land with the Eastern Shoshone, are expected to make a similar vote soon.

"Buffalo as wildlife allows the animals to exist on the landscape, rather than livestock based on economic and Western paradigms," Jason Baldes, executive director of the Wind River Buffalo Initiative, told the AP.

Once near extinction, there are now roughly 20,000 wild plains buffalo, but most are actually raised in private operations for the meat industry and are seen as a market beyond cows.

The beef industry contributes a significant amount of planet-warming emissions, with cows accounting for 10% of those, per Scientific American.

Buffalo emit methane as well, but they can have a positive impact on the environment by increasing biodiversity through their grazing and movement. If they are treated more like wildlife rather than livestock, their positive impact can grow.

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According to the World Wildlife Fund, their wallows — or areas where bison roll around on the ground and pack down the soil — fill with rainwater and provide breeding grounds for amphibians and a drinking source for wildlife, and grazing on different grasses can help nesting birds.

Redesignating buffalo is also a means to restore tribal sovereignty, including allowing the animals to roam free and be hunted. Buffalo were hunted to near extinction when European colonizers took over tribal lands, targeted as part of the effort to remove Native American peoples from their land.

Baldes wants buffalo treated as they were before Western expansion, saying, "Bringing the buffalo back is about our relationship with them, not domination over them."

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