Montana Bill Would Treat Yellowstone Buffalo as Valued Wildlife

The Montana Wild Buffalo Recovery and Conservation Act of 2009, introduced by Montana Representative Mike Phillips, will be heard by Montana's House Fish, Wildlife and Parks Committee in Helena on Thursday.

A large public turnout is expected as the controversy over management of the largest free-ranging buffalo herd in the United States has raged for more than 20 years.

The bill, HB253, designates Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks as the sole state agency responsible for the management of wild buffalo, also called bison, removing the Montana Department of Livestock, which now has shares jurisdiction over buffalo management whenever they leave Yellowstone National Park.

Wild buffalo cow and calf in Yellowstone National Park (Photo courtesy Buffalo Field Campaign)

The last genetically pure strain of wild buffalo in the United States, the Yellowstone herd, has been managed since 2000 under a controversial state and federal interagency plan that involves three federal and two state agencies - the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and U.S. Forest Service; the Department of the Interior's National Park Service; Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks; and the Montana Department of Livestock.

Some of these bison, as well as elk and other wildlife, have contagious disease brucellosis, which can cause pregnant animals to abort. Montana livestock owners and government officials fear that if bison are allowed to leave the park, the disease could spread to cattle, potentially threatening the economic health of the state's livestock industry.

HB253 protects private property rights and Montana's valued livestock brucellosis-free status, by maintaining cooperation with the Department of Livestock.

No known cases of brucellosis transmitted from bison to cattle have been documented in the wild and some conservationists point to this fact to suggest that current bison management actions are unnecessary.

In contrast, Montana's State Veterinarian maintains that this absence of documentation does not indicate a low risk of transmission, but rather provides evidence that the various park boundary control programs to manage Yellowstone bison have been effective.

Combined, the agencies have spent more than $2 million annually implementing the plan, with the federal government paying 95 percent of the cost, according to the Government Accountability Office, which produced a report critical of the interagency management in March 2008.

In 2008, as a result of bison management under the interagency plan, 1,434 bison were captured and sent to a slaughterhouse. 112 bison were transferred to a quarantine facility, 10 animals died in capture pens, and eight bison shot because they could not be chased back towards the park.

In addition, 166 bison were harvested on constricted habitat without fair-chase hunting, and all bison were hazed back into the park by May 15, using helicopters and motorized off-road vehicles.

Bison have not been allowed to access habitat where conflicts with livestock do not exist, including private lands where they are welcome, public grazing lands and game ranges purchased for wildlife habitat.

Over the years, conservation groups have protested these techniques by blockading, monitoring, videotaping and lobbying federal and state legislators. The Gallatin Wildlife Association proposed much of the language in the bill, gaining the support of other conservationists.

"HB253 takes a significant step in the right direction," said Mike Mease, co-founder of the Buffalo Field Campaign whose volunteers defend the buffalo and their habitat and advocate for their lasting protection.

HB253 will be a boon to Montana's economy," said Stephany Seay, a spokeswoman with Buffalo Field Campaign. "Tourists from around the world come through Montana's gateway communities into Yellowstone to get a glimpse of these majestic, prehistoric wonders. By allowing wild buffalo to gain some respect in Montana, we are on our way to gaining them some ground.

"Wild bison are native to this state and pose an enormous benefit to the ecological, economic, cultural, and spiritual integrity of Montana," she said.

"Yellowstone buffalo are wildlife, and they should be managed by our wildlife professionals," said Lisa Upson of Natural Resources Defense Council. "The legislation also addresses private property concerns, allowing owners to have buffalo managed if on their property. It's a win-win and a step in the right direction for wild buffalo management."

The Yellowstone herd has grown from fewer than 25 bison in 1901 to nearly 5,000 animals as estimated in late summer 2007. It is the largest free-ranging bison herd in the United States and one of the few U.S. herds that show no evidence of genetic mixing with cattle.

Since 1995 when the Montana Department of Livestock took charge of managing the Yellowstone bison, 5,390 animals have been killed.

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