southwest plains bison

Texas Bison History

Buffalo Jumps -Texas  Charles Goodnight Bison Herd Pages: 1 2 3 A metal arrow point from a long-ago bison hunt still stuck in a centuries-old bison vertebrae found in the Texas panhandle. http://www.mystatesman.com/news/news/local/bison-skeleton-in-burnet-county-up-to-700-years-ol/npG9K/#modal-8356379   Bison – Buffalo Timeline for Texas   Early: 25-30 million bison on the Plains. 1500’s An estimated 30 to 60 million bison living in North America.1535 – At last the end of 35 days, Coronado determined to send his army home and take a special squad of 20 horsemen  and  go  on  to the wonderful  country  of  which  the  Turk  had  spoken  and  called  Quvsira,  and  which  the  local  … Read more

Southern Plains Bison: Mar 2015

Southern Plains Pointers – March 2015 Red Dot Alert! The first new lines of 2015 models are sprinkling the southern plains with big heavy brown clouds gathering and indicating a big event.  It will soon be ‘Raining Red-Dots’. The colors of the southern plains this time of year are brilliant and diverse as ecological succession paints a canvas never to be repeated and enhanced by the colors of sable and chocolate-brown. If you are lucky enough to see this in your travels, or on your property, squint and take away all things civilization and behold – the southern plains a millennia … Read more

Southern Plains Bison: Feb 2015

February in the Southern Plains is a time for questions and checking the management-boxes for preparedness to leave the herd alone throughout the calving season. Some of those questions and boxes are: Am I feeding them too much in the last trimester?   Is my mineral program up to speed? Do I have an orphan kit organized?   Are my herd populations in balance with my grass through July/August?   Does the herd ‘appear’ healthy?   Personally I don’t like handling or changing up the populations during the calving season. The less we impact their world while they are calving, … Read more

Southern Plains Bison: June 2014

    Just a word before I write about southern plains bison realities that are current, but less about ‘meanwhile-back-at-the-ranch’ stuff. That word is worms!  I will follow that by saying worms, worms, worms, worms, worms!  They are the enemy and the #1 production and reproduction challenge to bison of the southern plains. In much of the southern plains we are enjoying plenty of moisture, guess what! – worms will come with that moisture and with specificity to a very real enemy, the liver fluke. This is a nasty little cuss that you should research for yourself and learn to hate … Read more

Southern Plains Bison: April 2014

Spring has most definitely sprung and it’s ‘raining red-dots’. For me; it’s miraculous and one of my favorite times of the year. Just the other day I was working on a round-to-it with the herd off in the distance, but well in sight. It was late afternoon and turning into early evening.  My hands were occupied with menial task, while I contemplated things that were complicated to me for no reason and to no pragmatic end.  All at once the herd emerged from its afternoon hibernation, set off by a red-dot chain reaction of running and playing for no reason … Read more