The Ecological Future of the North American Bison: Conceiving Long-Term, Large-Scale Conservation of Wildlife |
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| Authors: | ERIC W SANDERSON KENT H REDFORD BILL WEBER KEITH AUNE DICK BALDES JOEL BERGER † DAVE CARTER CHARLES CURTIN JAMES DERR STEVE DOBROTT EVA FEARN CRAIG FLEENER STEVE FORREST CRAIG GERLACH C CORMACK GATES JOHN E GROSS PETER GOGAN SHAUN GRASSEL JODI A HILTY MARV JENSEN KYRAN KUNKEL DUANE LAMMERS RURIK LIST KAREN MINKOWSKI TOM OLSON CHRIS PAGUE PAUL B ROBERTSON BOB STEPHENSON |
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| Institution: | ;Wildlife Conservation Society, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, U.S.A. ;Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, 1420 East Sixth Avenue, Helena, MT 59620, U.S.A. ;Wind River Alliance, P.O. Box 888, Fort Washakie, WY 82514, U.S.A. ;National Bison Association, 1400 W. 122nd Avenue, No. 106, Westminister, CO 80234, U.S.A. ;Arid Lands Project, Box 29 Animas, NM 88020, U.S.A. ;Texas A&M University, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College Station, TX 77843, U.S.A. ;Ladder Ranch, HC 31 Box 95, Caballo, NM 87931, U.S.A. ;Council of Athabascan Tribal Governments, 113 Angel Pond Subdivision, Fort Yukon, AK 99740, U.S.A. ;World Wildlife Fund-US, Northern Great Plains Program, P.O. Box 7276, Bozeman, MT 59771, U.S.A. ;University of Alaska Fairbanks, Eielson 309, Fairbanks, AK 99775, U.S.A. ;University of Calgary, Faculty of Environmental Design, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada ;National Park Service, Inventory and Monitoring Program, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Suite 150, Ft. Collins, CO 80525, U.S.A. ;USGS–Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Forestry Sciences Lab, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, U.S.A. ;Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, 187 Oyate Circle, Lower Brule, SD 57548, U.S.A. ;Vermejo Park Ranch, P.O. Drawer E, Raton, NM 87740, U.S.A. ;777 Buffalo Ranch, Hermosa, SD 57744, U.S.A. ;Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, A.P. 70-275, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico. ;Box 250, Bragg Creek, AB T0L 0K0, Canada ;The Nature Conservancy, 2424 Spruce Street, Boulder, CO 80302, U.S.A. ;Alaska Department of Fish and Game/Wildlife Conservation, 1300 College Road, Fairbanks, AK 99701, U.S.A. |
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| Abstract: | Abstract: Many wide-ranging mammal species have experienced significant declines over the last 200 years; restoring these species will require long-term, large-scale recovery efforts. We highlight 5 attributes of a recent range-wide vision-setting exercise for ecological recovery of the North American bison ( Bison bison ) that are broadly applicable to other species and restoration targets. The result of the exercise, the "Vermejo Statement" on bison restoration, is explicitly (1) large scale, (2) long term, (3) inclusive, (4) fulfilling of different values, and (5) ambitious. It reads, in part, "Over the next century, the ecological recovery of the North American bison will occur when multiple large herds move freely across extensive landscapes within all major habitats of their historic range, interacting in ecologically significant ways with the fullest possible set of other native species, and inspiring, sustaining and connecting human cultures." We refined the vision into a scorecard that illustrates how individual bison herds can contribute to the vision. We also developed a set of maps and analyzed the current and potential future distributions of bison on the basis of expert assessment. Although more than 500,000 bison exist in North America today, we estimated they occupy <1% of their historical range and in no place express the full range of ecological and social values of previous times. By formulating an inclusive, affirmative, and specific vision through consultation with a wide range of stakeholders, we hope to provide a foundation for conservation of bison, and other wide-ranging species, over the next 100 years. |
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| Keywords: | Bison bison conservation goals ecological representation species conservation planning the Vermejo Statement |
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