UPDATE From the CampThe snow is falling and the buffalo are starting their migration out of the Park. This week we have a recon plane flight over the Park, all courtesy of Project Lighthawk. This will enable us to see how close the buffalo are to the (invisible) park boundaries.
Lighthawk has also committed to help this winter doing flyovers of the Duck Creek and Horse Butte capture facilities. This will enable us to monitor the DOL and check the numbers of captured buffalo and their condition. Now that the Duck Creek capture facility has been moved this will be our only way to monitor that facility. The cost of a flyover is $60 an hour. Any contributions towards this would be greatly appreciated and of course is tax deductible.
So far this year, we have had 71 volunteers from around the world. Over 30 of these people are veteran return volunteers. These people are dedicated individuals and rest assured the buffalo have good allies.
Thank you for all of your support and efforts and we invite you to come out and be a part of this fine operation.
For the Buffalo,
Michael S. Mease
Campaign Coordinator, Buffalo Field Campaign
Buffalo Soldiers Take Position
Yellowstone's bison are on the move, and so are their defenders. A thin crust of snow covers the sage flats and pine meadows of West Yellowstone, Montana, as the Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC) swings into its third season. Volunteers are stacking firewood, setting up teepees, dusting off skis, and generally gearing up for another season of daily bison-defense patrols. Sixty-one volunteers have already checked in for the 1999-2000 campaign, and BFC co-founder Mike Mease expects the number to surpass last year's record of 250 volunteers.
The goal is literally to save the bison's' lives. As the winter grows harsher, many of Yellowstone's 2,500 bison -- the last wild remnants of the vast herds that once roamed the US -- are expected to descend from the park's high country to search for fresh grazing land. This migration is a natural survival tactic for the bison -- but one that poses a threat to their lives should they stray over the state line into Montana. Under a 1996 federal law, Montana has the right to kill any bison found outside of Yellowstone that tests positive for brucellosis, a bacterial disease that poses a threat to the state's domestic cattle herds.
Most scientists agree that the chances of Yellowstone bison actually infecting Montana's cattle are slight. Still, Montana officials say that if they do not control the brucellosis threat, other states may ban imports of their cattle. That concern led Montana officials to kill some 1,100 bison in 1996 -- nearly half the park's population at the time. The slaughter galvanized a group of activists to form the BFC. Since 1997, the campaigners have worked to monitor the park's bison and shoo them back to safety when they stray towards the park's boundaries.
This year, winter has come later than expected. Snow levels are still low in Yellowstone National Park, and this has encouraged the main bison herd to stay at higher elevations within park boundaries. But when the winter storms hit, the bison will start moving down, looking for better grazing in the valleys west and north of Yellowstone. When that happens, Montana's Department of Livestock agents will be waiting for them.
There has only been one fatality this year, albeit a particularly controversial one. In late September, a dead buffalo was found near a DOL capture facility, minus its head, cape, hide, and genitalia. Dale Koelzer, who owns the land on which the facility is housed, has been charged with illegally killing the animal.
According to US government sources, Montana has not signaled any intention to relax its official anti-bison policies this winter. In November, the DOL's executive officer, Marc Bridges, wrote an editorial in local newspapers announcing the state's intentions to carry out the same capture-test-and-slaughter program as it had in past years. Bridges ended his op-ed piece with an ominous observation: "Fortunately, the park's current bison population is reportedly at least five times above the number scientists say is required to assure the long term viability and survival of the herd." In other words, the livestock bureaucrat thinks that 2,000 out of 2,500 buffalo could be killed without harming the last wild herd in America. "We're afraid the DOL is going to try to kill as many bison as they can this year," says Mike Mease. "With (Montana) Gov. Racicot going out office next year, it could be their last chance." When and if the slaughter begins, Mease says the Buffalo Field Campaign will be ready.
Contact BFC at:
Buffalo Field Campaign
406-646-0070 phone
406-646-0071 fax
buffalo@wildrockies.org
http://www.wildrockies.org/buffaloNew Compilation Buffalo Video Available
Cold Mountain, Cold Rivers has a compilation video available on the Yellowstone buffalo. Plan B, The Buffalo's Alternative is a brief scientific advocacy piece on long-term management strategies to allow buffalo to roam free in Yellowstone. Buffalo Bull is a more in-depth documentary on the Yellowstone buffalo slaughter. Where the Buffalo Roam profiles the field campaign and their efforts to protect the Yellowstone buffalo herd. To purchase the video send a check or money order for $20 to Cold Mountain, Cold Rivers; PO Box 7941 Missoula MT 59807.
Elders and educators can receive a video at a discount please send a query to mailto:cmcr@wildrockies.org or call our office at 406-728-0867.