National Parks’ Challenges

Case Study 6: Bison Have No Boundaries: Free-ranging bison in Prince Albert National Park of Canada

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Contents:
1. Issue Overview
2. Park overview
3. Detailed issue information
4. Stakeholder descriptions
5. Supplementary activity
6. Supplementary information

1. Issue Overview

Plains bison were near extinction in the late 1800s. The Canadian Government reintroduced this species to Canada in the early 1900s. By accident, in 1969, a herd of 10 - 22 plains bison made their way to an area in Prince Albert National Park called the “West Side”. Here, they repopulated their historic range.

Numbering around 400 animals, these Sturgeon River plains bison today “have no boundaries”. They are free-ranging and not fenced in, venturing in and out of the Park at will. This causes both positive impacts on the regional ecosystem and some negative impacts for landowners near the park.

The positive impacts of bison:

• They create trails through the forest that are used by other animals and people.
• They modify vegetation through grazing and horning.
• They disperse seeds by what they eat and excrete, with their fur as a carrying mechanism.
   
  
  Bison grazing
  © Parks Canada/ Lin Gallagher
   
• They are a food source for predators, wolves and scavengers (i.e., ravens and foxes).
• Birds eat insects on bison, and use under-fur for nests.
• Their wallows allow for establishment of new plants.
• Their droppings return to grasslands, providing nutrients to soil and plants.
• They provide viewing opportunities for visitors to see bison in a historic range.

The negative impacts of bison:

• They damage/destroy farmland crops by foraging/wallowing.
• They have the potential to transmit/receive disease by contact with livestock.
• They may damage fences or other infrastructure; domestic animals may escape onto farmlands or into the Park.
• Like other wildlife, there may be
  • safety concerns for people surprising bison or not giving them right-of-way.
  • vehicle collisions caused by bison encountered on roads.

How can we protect these mammals and ensure a long-term viable population within their regional ecosystem once they leave the Park and come in contact with the “outside world”?

Bison grazing by lake
© Parks Canada

2. Park overview: Prince Albert National Park of Canada, est. 1927

• The Park leads in protecting 3 875 km2 near pristine plains/forest in Southern Boreal Plains and Plateaux Natural Region.
   
  
  Aerial photo of Snare Lake Meadow
  © Parks Canada/ Lloyd O’Brodovich
   
• The Park is a renowned destination with lakes, wetlands, forests, and native grasslands.
• Prince Albert National Park in central Saskatchewan works with a network of stakeholders on sustainable ecosystem management
• Visit Sturgeon River plains bison at these locations:
  • Westside Boundary Trail - 37.5 km to hike, bike or horseback from Cookson Road to Sturgeon Crossing Picnic Area
  • West Side drive by vehicle - 85.5 km from Park’s South Gate to Sturgeon Crossing Picnic Area

The Prince Albert National Park Fact Sheet (located in Printable Versions) will provide you with more information on this park. You can also consult the National Park System Plan; look up Region 12.

3. Detailed issue information

3.1 Bison

In 1906, the Canadian government purchased one of the last remaining plains bison herds. Some of these animals became the herd at Elk Island National Park in Alberta.

The “accident” in 1969 happened when about 50 bison from Elk Island were released, north of Prince Albert National Park, in the Thunder Hills. The bison did not remain in the area. Ten to 22 bison travelled southwards to establish today’s Sturgeon River population, which reached around 400 by 2006.

• Up to 150 bison have gone outside the park at one time for an extended period of time.
• Bison feed in sedge and grassland meadows.
• The bison range covers about 700 km2 within, and 50km2 outside, the Park.
• This is the only free-ranging plains bison population in Canada clearly living within their historic range.
• In 2005, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) listed Plains Bison as Threatened.
   
  
  Bison at watering hole
  © Parks Canada/ DAW

3.2 Agricultural Influences

• Most of the historic plains bison range in Canada has been converted for agriculture.
• The range outside the Park:
  • farmland/native grassland/planted pasture/cereal crop/Crown land
• Free-ranging bison may occasionally come in contact with livestock or domestic bison, which can have serious consequences:
  • Diseases may be transmitted from livestock through direct contact, accessing haystacks, or other domestic animal feed supplies.
• Bison prefer natural forage but, given the opportunity, will eat farm crops i.e., hay.

3.3 Critical Habitat

• These bison require large tracts of land.
• Aspen forests adjacent to meadows are used extensively for shelter from heat and cold.
• Bulls push the limits of bison ranges, and are first to “discover” new habitats.
• Almost one third of the land surrounding the range of bison is unacceptable for expansion because of agricultural activities.
• Loss of sedge/grassland meadows is due to forest encroachment, by:
  • Fire suppression in the agricultural areas and park.
  • The absence of bison and their grazing during most of twentieth century.
• Landscape diversity has declined due to lack of fire and the resulting spread and maturing of forests.
   
  
  Map of plains bison range in North America
  © Parks Canada

3.4 Genetic Diversity

• In a larger wild population, bison breed with animals that have varied genetic diversity.
• Domestic bison herds have 1 bull to 15 or more cows; all offspring are related.
• In this free-ranging herd, individual bulls do not breed with as many females, resulting in more diversity in offspring.
• Competition between bulls ensures that the fittest bulls contribute genetics to population.
   
  
  Bison in rut
  © Parks Canada/ Joe Benge
   
• Loss of genetic diversity has serious negative effects on long-term viability of population, because
  • increases likelihood of inbreeding, and
  • decreases population’s ability to adapt to different selection pressures, i.e., climate change or disease
• Negative effects of inbreeding include:
  • lower fertility, more developmental defects, greater susceptibility to disease, higher mortality as a result of lower fitness, and health risks to the environment.
• There is little evidence of inbreeding in this Park population

3.5 Recreational Opportunities

• The Westside Boundary trail/West Side driving tour provide public access to bison, fescue grasslands and American white pelican on Sturgeon River, which are three features of Prince Albert National Park.
• The west-side aspen parkland offers the most untamed and undeveloped settings in the southern part of the park.
• Numerous trails and backcountry camping are available within the Park.
• Amyot Lake trail, starting at the Westside Picnic Area, is 15.5 km by foot or horse.
• Sturgeon River can be canoed for birding or bison viewing.
   
  
  Public viewing bison
  © Parks Canada/ Craig Zimmerman
   
• Bison trails facilitate hiking, bike riding and cross country skiing.
• There is potential for establishing campgrounds/trails outside park boundary on the West Side.

3.6 Observations

• These plains bison are one of three herds in Canada subjected to natural selection pressures, which can include:
  • predation,
  • environmental/physical elements (i.e.: drought, food shortage),
  • freedom to determine movements and home range, and
  • physical hazards that can injure or kill the bison such as drowning , thin ice, floods, fire, slippery footings, falling into holes, tripping, etc.
• The bison’s use for consumptive and non-consumptive purposes (e.g., hunting and ecotourism) is considered outside the Park, so the Park population becomes secure and viable over the long term.

3.7 Reducing Negative Physical Impacts

Proposed methods include:

• cultivating crops unattractive to bison,
• building exclusionary fencing around livestock feed storage,
• improving fencing to exclude or divert bison from private lands,
• implementing reactive activities, such as hazing, to move bison into their natural habitat, and
• possibly developing specific management actions inside the park that may reduce impacts on neighbouring farmlands (i.e., fire, trail modifications, etc.).

4. Stakeholder descriptions

4.1 The role of Parks Canada is to

• take a conservation role in managing the bison population,
• monitor the health and numerical status of the bison,
• support research to reduce impact on stakeholders without fencing bison,
• advocate keeping the bison population free-ranging or “wild” so that the natural selection processes can occur.

Parks Canada wildlife biologist
You have a Master’s degree in Biology and have worked as the Bison Management Researcher for the past 15 years. You are striving towards ecological integrity. You are concerned with the increasing impact of bison on local farmland and the effects this may have on the long-term viability of the population. How will the bison be managed in the face of all the human pressures?

4.2 The Role of Sturgeon River Plains Bison Stewards (SRPBS) is to

• keep communication open between local stakeholders, Prince Albert National Park and Saskatchewan Environment,
• promote good stewardship practices that reduce bison impacts,
• protect the Sturgeon River plains bison population, and
• facilitate further education and informing the public about this unique plains bison population.

Local Resident
You have been farming outside the Park for 30 years. Recently, the bison have been sporadically coming onto your land to eat your grain and have flattened your crops. Once, they knocked down your fence and your cattle escaped. As a member of SRPBS, you enjoy the bison in the Park, but they are affecting the economy of your farming and the repairs are costly. You want to be compensated, and you want the impacts of the bison to be minimal.

Ecotourism Operator
You have just moved to the West Side and are starting a new business in Ecotourism. You are a member of SRPBS and would like to benefit from the free-ranging bison as a feature of your business. You would like to open a campground and facilitate people viewing the bison in their historic range, in or out of the Park. You would like your trails to link up with the trails in the park.

Bison Rancher
You have a bison ranch outside of the Park. You and your partner are very interested in bison. You are a member of SRPBS and are concerned with the interactions between your livestock and the Sturgeon River plains bison. Once, a free-ranging bull breached a fence, attempted to breed with your cows, and challenged your bulls.

Bison on the run
© Parks Canada/ Merv Syroteuk

4.3 The role of Saskatchewan Environment (SE) is to

• have jurisdiction outside Park to decide what happens to the bison once they leave the Park , including issuing permits to destroy problem bison and chasing bison off private property,
• receive complaints and input through stakeholders and local landowners,
• follow similar conservation objectives as the Park, but focus more on the concerns of the local landowners,
• recognize that bison have full protection under the Saskatchewan Wildlife Act, and
• be a stakeholder member.

Conservation Officer
As a Conservation Officer for the Province, you support the regional conservation of the free-ranging bison herd. You are more responsive to public pressure and local residents’ concerns. It is your responsibility to handle the bison that do enter local residents’ land under the direction of senior managers.

5. Supplementary Activity

Contact the Prince Albert National Park expert on bison management. Include them in your round table discussions. Suggestions include via teleconferencing, videotaping, or web cam. If you are local, it may be possible for the expert to come into your classroom.

To arrange for this opportunity, contact Parks Canada’s Education Specialist, Lise Boiteau, at (204) 983-1350.

6. Supplementary Information

Use the information below to help you with the terminology and provide you with further information about the Plains bison and stakeholders in Prince Albert National Park.

6.1 Glossary

Adjacent: lying near, close, or contiguous

Critical Habitat: means the habitat that is necessary for the survival or recovery of a listed wildlife species and that is identified as the species’ critical habitat’ in the recovery strategy or in an action plan for the species.

Crown land: land owned by the Crown, the provincial government

Ecotourism: nature travel experience that contributes to conservation of the ecosystem and economic resources of the host communities.

Forage: herbaceous plant material (mainly grasses and sedges) eaten by grazing animals.

Hazing: controlled, intentional movement of bison by using scaring devices including bangers, screamers, horns and pursuit using atv’s and snowmobiles to chase the bison back to their natural habitat

Horning: thrashing of small trees or shrubs by their horns and heads de-barking and killing the trees

Infrastructure: basic physical framework like buildings and fences

Rut: period of species behaviour preceding and leading to breeding

Stakeholder: person or group that has an investment, share, or interest in something, as a business or industry.

Wallow: (verb) to roll the body on the ground for physical maintenance of coat and reducing insects; way of scratching ; part of display behaviour during the rut (noun) Also refers to the resulting feature on the ground, a shallow depression created in the soil.

6.2 References

Beaulieu, R. 2005. Personal Communication

Bergeson, D. 1992. A comparative assessment of management problems associated with the free roaming bison in Prince Albert National Park. M.Sc. Diss. University of Manitoba, Manitoba. 145 pp.

Boyd, D. 2003. Conservation of North American Bison: Status and Recommendations. M.Sc. Diss. University of Calgary, Alberta. xiii + 142 pp.

COSEWIC. 2004. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the plains bison Bison bison bison in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vi + 71 pp.

Fortin, D. 2000. Foraging decisions at multiple spatial and temporal scales: A bison perspective. Ph.D. Diss. University of Guelph. Ontario. xii + 180 pp.

Meagher, M.M. 1978. Bison. Pp. 123-133 in J.L. Schmidt and D.L. Gilbert, editors. Big game of North America: ecology and management. Stackpole Books, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

O’Brodovich, L. 2005. Personal Communication.

Ogilvie, S.C. 1979. The Park Buffalo : Being an Account of the Role of Canada’s National Parks in the Preservation of the North American Bison. National and Provincial Parks Association of Canada, Calgary-Banff Chapter, Reid, Crowther and Partners, Calgary, Alberta. 68 pp.

Parks Canada. 2005 Bison survey, conducted March 6, 2005, by Prince Albert National Park staff.

Reynolds, H.W., C.C. Gates, and R.D. Glaholt. 2003. Bison. Pp 1009-1060 in G.A. Feldhammer, B.C Thompson, and J.A. Chapman (eds.). Wild Mammals of North America. Biology, Management, and Conservation. 2nd edition. London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 1368 pp.

Roe, F.G. 1970. The North American Buffalo: A Critical Study of the Species in its Wild State. 2nd edition. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Ontario. xi + 991 pp.

6.3 Other Resource

Plains Bison: COSEWIC Status Report:
http://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/status/showDocument_e.cfm?id=421

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