American bison
(Bos bison)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status |
|
||||
| IUCN Red List | NT - Near Threatened |
||||
| NatureServe | N4 - Apparently Secure SX - Presumed Extirpated |
||||
| Minnesota | not listed |
||||
Description
Size
Total height: 5′ to 6′
Total length: 10′ to 12′
Weight: 800 to 2,000 lbs.
Sign
Similar Species
No similar species
Habitat
Historically: grasslands, meadows, woodlands, and woodland openings.
Currently: none, considered extirpated in the wild
Ecology
Behavior
Lifespan
15 years in the wild, 25 years in captivity
Life Cycle
Food
Grasses
Distribution |
||
|
Sources Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu, 12/7/2025). Hazard, Evan B. 1982. The Mammals of Minnesota. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota. 280 pp. |
|
| 12/7/2025 | ||
There are no wild populations of bison in Minnesota. The counties in dark green show where there are captive bison herds. The counties in light green lack modern records but show where bison bones have been found in the state. |
||
Occurrence |
||
Reintroduced. Captive herds. |
||
Taxonomy
Class
Subclass
Theria
Infraclass
Placentalia (Placental Mammals)
Magnorder
Boreoeutheria
Superorder
Laurasiatheria (Ungulates, Carnivorans, and Allies)
Order
Artiodactyla (Even-toed Ungulates and Cetaceans)
Suborder
Ruminantia (Ruminants)
Infraorder
Pecora
Superfamily
Bovoidea
Family
Bovidae (Bovids)
Subfamily
Bovinae (Bovines)
Tribe
Bovini (Cattle and Bison)
Genus
Bos
Subgenus
Bison
Genus
The scientific name of the American Bison is currently a subject of taxonomic revision. Bison bison is the scientific name used in most historical literature and remains the common designation across the globe. Modern genetic (DNA) and cladistic analysis shows that the genus Bison is phylogenetically embedded within the genus Bos (the genus that includes domestic cattle). To maintain the strict principle of monophyly in classification, the species was formally moved to the genus Bos.
MinnesotaSeasons.com follows the classification of the Mammal Diversity Database (MDD), maintained by the American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). The MDD currently lists the species as Bos bison.
Subordinate Taxa
plains bison (Bos bison ssp. bison) 
wood bison (Bos bison ssp. athabascae)
Synonyms
Bison americanus
Bison americanus ssp. pennsylvanicus
Bison bison
Bison bison ssp. athabasacae
Bison bison ssp. athabascae
Bison bison ssp. bison
Bison bison ssp. septemtrionalis
Bison sylvestris
Bisons bison
Bos americanus
Common Names
American bison
bison
Visitor Photos
Share your photo of this mammal.
This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach one or more photos and, if you like, a caption.
Wayne Rasmussen |
 |
MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos
|
Slideshows
Bison
DianesDigitals
Bison bison (Buffalo)
Allen Chartier
Bison
jt893x
Bison
Craig A. Mullenbach
Visitor Videos
Share your video of this mammal.
This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach a video, a YouTube link, or a cloud storage link.
Other Videos
Finding Minnesota: Minneopa Bison At Minnesota State Park
WCCO - CBS Minnesota
Bringing Home the Bison – Minneopa State Park
MinnesotaDNR
Bison Release, Belwin Conservancy, June 15, 2013, Lakeland, MN
call0031
New bison calves, at Blue Mounds State Park!
MinnesotaDNR
Minnesota Zoo Welcomes Two Bison Calves as Part of Partnership with DNR
Minnesota Zoo
Visitor Sightings
Report a sighting of this mammal.
This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Be sure to include a location.
Wayne Rasmussen
7/21/2008
Location: Oxbow Co Park & Zoo, Olmstead County
MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings
