Talk:American bison

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This article is written in American English, which has its own spelling conventions (center, color, defense, realize, traveled) and some terms may be different or absent from other varieties of English. According to the relevant style guide, this should not be changed without broad consensus.

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Section sizes

Section size for American bison (32 sections)
Section name	Byte count		Prose size (words)
Section name	Header	Total	Header	Total
(Top)	9,279	9,279	442	442
Etymology	3,444	3,444	277	277
Description	7,915	7,915	379	379
Evolution	4,876	9,285	242	601
Differences from European bison	1,739	1,739	170	170
Crossbreeding with cattle	2,670	2,670	189	189
Range and population	1,978	11,290	118	687
Habitat and trails	3,926	3,926	352	352
Mexico	2,323	2,323	127	127
Introductions to Siberia	3,063	3,063	90	90
Behavior and ecology	3,331	19,859	161	1,247
Social behavior and reproduction	5,123	5,123	457	457
Horning	972	972	99	99
Wallowing behavior	1,707	1,707	94	94
Predation	5,906	5,906	275	275
Dangers to humans	2,820	2,820	161	161
Genetics	9,054	9,054	1,098	1,098
Population bottleneck and near extinction	1,961	9,004	214	1,079
Texas State Bison Herd	4,921	4,921	663	663
Yellowstone National Park Bison Herd	1,505	1,505	150	150
Population recovery	617	617	52	52
Hunting	7,513	7,513	440	440
As livestock	6,502	9,067	723	982
Domestication	2,565	2,565	259	259
As a symbol	17	6,809	0	475
Native Americans	1,681	1,681	164	164
North America	5,111	5,111	311	311
See also	347	347	0	0
Notes	26	26	0	0
References	42	42	0	0
Further reading	3,135	3,135	0	0
External links	1,560	1,560	0	0
Total	107,629	107,629	7,707	7,707

There is a request, submitted by Catfurball (talk), for an audio version of this article to be created. For further information, see WikiProject Spoken Wikipedia.
The rationale behind the request is: Important.

picture caption in second section of article

Although a minor issue, the picture on the left currently states "wild bison and calf" when it is plain to someone who can identify sex that the two bison in question are an adult male, and and adult female bison.

Range and Population section needs range information

Latest comment: 6 months ago4 comments2 people in discussion

I suggest that this section includes more about range and distribution. Currently there is information about population, but nothing about their range, current or historically. LSlatten (talk) 00:32, 2 December 2025 (UTC)Reply

There are 8 paragraphs in this section. I think you didn't look closely enough. - UtherSRG (talk) 01:02, 2 December 2025 (UTC)Reply

Hi, no need to be rude! You're right, I did miss the range maps because they are under the genetics section. Wouldn't it make more sense to have range maps under the Range and Population section? LSlatten (talk) 20:44, 10 December 2025 (UTC)Reply

Hrm... it could be because there are already other images in that section and the maps would make things too crowded. I could get behind rearranging a bunch of that so that the maps are in a more logical location. - UtherSRG (talk) 21:37, 10 December 2025 (UTC)Reply

Featured picture scheduled for POTD

Latest comment: 1 month ago1 comment1 person in discussion

Hello! This is to let editors know that File:American bison_k5680-1.jpg, a featured picture that is used in this article, has been selected as the English Wikipedia's picture of the day (POTD) for May 3, 2026. A preview of the POTD is displayed below and can be edited at Template:POTD/2026-05-03. For the greater benefit of readers, any potential improvements or maintenance that could benefit the quality of this article should be done before its scheduled appearance on the Main Page. If you have any concerns, please place a message at Wikipedia talk:Picture of the day. Thank you! — Amakuru (talk) 09:13, 29 April 2026 (UTC)Reply

The American bison (Bison bison), commonly called the American buffalo, is a species of bovid and one of two living species of bison, alongside the European bison. With wild bulls recorded at up to 1,270 kilograms (2,800 lb), it is among the heaviest extant land animals in North America. Once numbering an estimated 60 million, the species was driven close to extinction by the late 19th century. Conservation and reintroduction have restored populations to some extent, and it is now found mainly in scattered conservation herds and protected areas across Canada, Mexico and the United States. The American bison is the national mammal of the United States and has for centuries been central to the lives and cultures of many Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains, being hunted as a source of food, clothing and shelter. This plains bison (subspecies B. b. bison) was photographed on rangeland in the Western United States by Jack Dykinga for the Agricultural Research Service.

Photograph credit: Jack Dykinga

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