From the National Park Service
Are the bison leaving Yellowstone National Park because it is overgrazed?
- To date, the central and northern bison herds have not reached the estimated food-limited carrying capacity of approximately 5,500 to 7,500 bison inside the park. Also, several assessments of conditions by scientists and land managers have indicated the park is not overgrazed.
- National Park Service biologists have recommended maintaining a bison population that fluctuates between 2,500 and 4,500 to preserve ecological processes that meet conservation needs and to mitigate social and political conflicts in Montana.
- What is the current bison population?
- Why are bison being removed from the population?
- How will the bison be removed from the population?
- Why are bison being shipped to meat processing facilities?
- Why can’t you harvest bison through hunting instead of shipping them to meat processing facilities?
- Why don’t you just keep all the bison within Yellowstone National Park?
- Are the bison leaving Yellowstone National Park because it is overgrazed?
- Why don’t you just let the bison roam freely outside Yellowstone National Park?
- Why don’t you allow native predators to control bison numbers?
- Why can’t you ship bison to other areas or quarantine facilities rather than meat processing facilities?
- What happens to all the meat, hides, horns, etc. from bison shipped to meat processing facilities?
- Why are bison managed differently from other wildlife and not allowed to move freely into Montana and disperse to new areas?
- Are removals of bison and shipments to meat processing facilities precedent setting for national parks?
- What are the economic costs of bison removals from Yellowstone National Park?
- Has the Interagency Bison Management Plan (IBMP) been successful at accomplishing its goals?
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