Conservation of American bison is heavily tied with conservation herds and the protected areas they roam. American bison occupy less than one percent of their historical range with fewer than 20,000 bison in conservation herds on public, tribal or private protected lands. The roughly 500,000 animals that are raised for commercial purposes are not included unless the entity is engaged in conservation efforts. + NameLocationOperatorHerd size American Prairie Montana American Prairie Foundation 800+ Antelope Island State ParkUtah Utah State Parks 200 Badlands National Park South Dakota National Park Service1000 Banff National ParkAlbertaParks Canada 36 Battelle Darby Creek Metro ParkOhio Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks 10 Bear Butte State ParkSouth Dakota South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks small Bear River State Park Wyoming Wyoming Division of State Parks and Historic Sites 10 Blue Mounds State ParkMinnesotaMinnesota Department of Natural Resources 100 Broken Kettle Grasslands PreserveIowaThe Nature Conservancy 200 Buffalo Pound Provincial Park Saskatchewan Saskatchewan Environment, Parks Branch Camp Pendleton bison herd California USMC (Camp Pendleton Game Warden's Office) 90 Camp Wainwright Alberta Department of National Defence (Canada) Caprock Canyons State ParkTexas Texas Parks and Wildlife Department150 Catalina Island bison herdCalifornia Catalina Island Conservancy 100 Chickasaw National Recreation Area Oklahoma National Park Service 3 Clymer Meadow Preserve Texas The Nature ConservancyChief Mountain Wilderness UnitMontanaBlackfeet Nation25 Chippewa Cree Tribal Buffalo PastureMontana Chippewa Cree 11 Chitina herd Alaska Alaska Department of Fish and Game Copper River herdAlaskaAlaska Department of Fish and Game Crane TrustNebraskaCrane Trust 50+ Cross Ranch Nature PreserveNorth Dakota The Nature Conservancy 200 CSKT Bison Range Montana Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes500 Cuenca Los Ojos Sonora Custer State ParkSouth Dakota South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks 1500 Daniels ParkColorado Denver Parks and Recreation 30 Delta Junction herd Alaska Alaska Department of Fish and Game Elk Island National ParkAlbertaParks Canada 315 El Santuario Ecological Reserve Coahuila Pro Cuatrociénegas Foundation Farewell Lake herd Alaska Alaska Department of Fish and Game Fermilab bison herdIllinois U.S. Department of Energy28 Finney Game Refuge Kansas Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Fort Niobrara National Wildlife RefugeNebraskaU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 350 Fort Peck Indian ReservationMontana Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes 400 Fort Robinson State ParkNebraskaNebraska Game and Parks Commission 150 Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge Texas Fort Worth, Texas 18 Genesee ParkColorado Denver Parks and Recreation 33 Grand Teton National Park–National Elk Refuge bison herd Wyoming National Park Service 1000 Grasslands National ParkSaskatchewanParks Canada 300 Hay-Zama Lakes Wildland Park AlbertaAlberta Parks 400 Henry Mountains bison herdUtahUtah Division of Wildlife Resources, Bureau of Land Management 400 Hot Springs State Park Wyoming Wyoming Division of State Parks and Historic Sites 15 House Rock State Wildlife Area Arizona Arizona Game and Fish Department Innoko National Wildlife Refuge AlaskaU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service94 Janos Biosphere Reserve ChihuahuaSecretariat of Environment and Natural Resources 138 Kankakee Sands Indiana The Nature Conservancy 90+ Konza Prairie Biological StationKansasThe Nature Conservancy, Kansas State University300 Land Between the Lakes National Recreation AreaKentuckyU.S. Forest Service50 Maderas del Carmen CoahuilaSecretariat of Environment and Natural Resources 19 Maxwell Wildlife Refuge KansasKansas Department of Wildlife and Parks 150 Medano–Zapata Ranch Colorado The Nature Conservancy Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie IllinoisU.S. Forest Service50 Minneopa State Park Minnesota Minnesota Department of Natural Resources 30 Nachusa Grasslands IllinoisThe Nature Conservancy130 Niobrara Valley Preserve Nebraska The Nature Conservancy Neal Smith National Wildlife RefugeIowaU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service50 Old Man on His Back Prairie and Heritage Conservation Area SaskatchewanNature Conservancy of Canada 115 Ordway Prairie Preserve South Dakota The Nature Conservancy Paynes Prairie Preserve State ParkFlorida Florida Department of Environmental Protection50-70 Pink Mountain British Columbia British Columbia Department of Water, Lands and Air Protection Prairie State ParkMissouri Missouri Department of Natural Resources 100 Primrose Lake Air Weapons Range Alberta–Saskatchewan CFB Cold Lake, Department of National Defence (Canada) Prince Albert National ParkSaskatchewanParks Canada 400Raymond State Wildlife AreaArizonaArizona Game and Fish Department Riding Mountain National ParkManitobaParks Canada 40 Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Colorado U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 150 Sandhill Wildlife AreaWisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources 15 Sandsage Bison Range & Wildlife Area KansasKansas Department of Wildlife and Parks 51 Smoky Valley Ranch Kansas The Nature Conservancy Soapstone Prairie/Red Mountain Colorado Fort Collins, Colorado and Larimer County 100 Spring Lake Park Reserve Minnesota Dakota County Parks 12 Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve Kansas The Nature Conservancy, National Park Service 90 Tallgrass Prairie Preserve Oklahoma The Nature Conservancy 2500 Theodore Roosevelt National ParkNorth Dakota National Park Service 800 Trexler Nature Preserve Pennsylvania Lehigh County 14 Vermejo Reserve New Mexico and ColoradoTed Turner 1200 Wanuskewin Heritage Park SaskatchewanWanuskewin Heritage Park Authority 12 Waterton Lakes National Park AlbertaParks Canada 6 White Horse Hill National Game PreserveNorth DakotaU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service20Wichita Mountains Wildlife RefugeOklahomaU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service650 Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area Nebraska Nebraska Game and Parks CommissionWind Cave National Park South Dakota National Park Service 400 Wolakota Buffalo Range South Dakota Rosebud Economic Development Corporation 100Wood Buffalo National Park Alberta and Northwest TerritoriesParks Canada 3000Yellowstone National Park Idaho, Montana, Wyoming National Park Service 4800Commercial herds are not included. Listed herds remove excess bison on a regular basis which may be slaughtered for commercial purposes.
References