American Bison: King of the Prairie

Nomadic herds of buffalo once roamed the prairies of the West in states like North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana. Buffalo used to wander hundreds of miles a year searching for good grasses to eat.

Tipis made using bison hides Many peoples of North America were also nomadic, because they followed the bison. Bison provided food, as well as other body parts such as bone and hides that could be used for shelter, clothing, tools, and many other needs. A bison herd in the 1800’s Tipis made using bison hides Bison were very important to Native American Indian tribes of central North America. Why do you think tipis could be easily taken down and set up again?

200 years ago, this whole valley was full of migrating bison instead of houses, fences, and roads!

Acknowledgements These beautiful color photos of American bison may be found in the National Image Library of The United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The beautiful sepia tone photos are courtesy of: Northwestern University Library, Edward S. Curtis's 'The North American Indian': the Photographic Images, 2001.