European bison is a large cloven-hoofed mammal; it belongs to the species of bulls from the genus bison. If you want to know more about the animal, then read the article further. There you will find out who the bison is, we will describe it in detail. In addition, we will talk about where he lives and what he eats.
Bison: Description
The weight of the animal can reach one ton, and the length is three meters. The height of such a beast is about one meter. A distinctive feature of the bison is a bright imbalance between a well-developed heavy front and a lighter back of the body. The color of the European bison is homogeneous, dark brown wool predominates, may have a reddish tint, the head and neck are covered with a curly beard. Females are smaller. Small sharp horns rise slightly on the head, slightly bent inward to each other. This weapon allows you to drive away predators and protect the territory.
The bison, the photo of which you see in the article, was almost completely destroyed in the 18-19 centuries, only thanks to the colossal work of scientists it was possible to find about 60 individuals around the world and with the help of various protective measures to start their breeding. At the moment, there are about two thousand of these animals.
The main habitat of the bison is dense mixed forests. That is why the rapid development of fields by crops and deforestation, as well as massive uncontrolled hunting for valuable meat and skin of these animals led to the extinction of the species. European bison for the winter period is combined into herds of several dozen heads. In the spring they fall into small groups, as a rule, the females remain with the cubs, and strong males lead a lonely lifestyle.
Bison of Bialowieza: where does it live and what eats?
Bialowieza bison is one of the varieties of this terrestrial mammal. A distinctive feature of this species is the larger size and light color of a grayish-brown hue. This bison got its name due to its habitat - Belovezhskaya Pushcha.
It is famous for its large tall trunk plain forest with a predominance of trees such as hornbeam, linden, ash and oak, and other deciduous. The bison adheres from year to year to one territory through which the river flows. The animal avoids wetlands, since there are a lot of insects in the swamps, which he tries to avoid, even tries to eat during the hours when they have not woken up yet. He comes to these places only in particularly dry years to replenish the body's water supply, when the rivers in its habitat dry up.
Fight
In late summer and early autumn, female bison begin to estrus, and males begin to rush. It is noteworthy that brawls in bison are not aggressive. The males fight with horns, and the weaker leaves, the winner does not pursue the vanquished. Therefore, such fights rarely end in severe injuries. The nature of the fight changes significantly if it is not a fight for a female with another male, but for territory.
The bison chases away deer, elk and other ungulates, especially fiercely, even to death. The only enemy of this giant is a wolf pack, especially in winter time with high snow levels, when movements are difficult and require a large expenditure of energy. Despite the large size and weight, the bison is very fast, hardy, can bounce up to two meters in height.
Breeding
After fertilization, the females bear the calf for 9 months until the end of April-May, then they feed a high-calorie milk up to 20% fat content for a year, and the calves are with them for another year. Full puberty is achieved by six years of life. As a rule, a bison appears every three years. On average, a bison lives twenty-seven to twenty-eight years.
The Bialowieza bison grazes in the herds in winter and summer. Even adult males come together in small groups and almost never meet alone in the wild.
Winter came...
What does a bison eat in winter? In the frosty period, the main share of the diet is the bark and branches of deciduous trees, oak, crab, ash and others, as well as mosses and lichens, which prevail in mixed forests. For most of the day, the bison sleeps in the forest, and water is given for 2-3 hours before sunrise and sunset, when all the insects sleep. Sometimes it feeds in the afternoon.
Summer has come ...
What does the bison eat in summer? In the hot season, the main share of consumption is made up of various succulent herbs and young shoots of trees and shrubs growing in the forest, as well as the bark of mountain ash, fir and elm, alder, ash and oak. The bison consumes tree bark less frequently. That's because he gets tired of this type of food during the winter.
Another kind
Belarusian bison is found in flat forests, swampy areas with thickets of alder, oak and ash. By the way, this is exactly what the bison eats. Got its name thanks to the habitat - Belarusian and Ukrainian Polesie. The external data of this animal completely coincides with the European species. The authorities of Belarus, in the territory of which the Belarusian bison lives, have decided to certify all individuals of this species.
According to scientists, too closely crossed individuals of the species carry developmental abnormalities in their genes and lead to extinction. The resumption of the variety began with the fact that only a few dozen heads were found, so the whole population is one big family. The main task of scientists artificially prevent crosses between genetically close individuals. The Belarusian bison is listed in the Red Book of Belarus, Russia, Poland and other countries of the former Soviet Union, as well as in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Third view
The Caucasian bison is the only species that lives on the territory of the Caucasus Mountains, at an altitude of five hundred to three thousand meters above sea level. It is characterized by dark curly hair, more elegant shapes and sizes. The weight of the male reaches six hundred kilograms, the weight of the females - up to four hundred. This subspecies is not crossed with any of the species of bison. The animal completely disappeared due to uncontrolled hunting and military operations in the habitat. At the moment, there is a hybrid species from a Caucasian male and a female Bialowieza bison, it is not much different from an extinct species.
After breeding, the bison had to go a long way to adapt to the mountain habitat in order to occupy the niche of an older ancestor. Deforestation of flat forests on the territory of the mountains has led to the fact that this species leads an almost sedentary lifestyle, and does not wander in search of quiet, low-snow pastures. Severe winters in the mountainous territories take away about 7% of the total number of goals every year, and in especially snowy ones - up to 15-20%. The female gives birth to one, rarely two cubs, every two to three years. Adults protect the bison from the attack of wolves and other possible predators with the whole herd. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the number reached no more than three hundred individuals, the weakening of the reproductive potential and the emergence of many diseases associated with a decrease in the genetic diversity of the species gradually began to appear.
Important Notice
The number of any type of bison does not exceed two thousand individuals, therefore, they can live only in well-protected reserves, where they organize special platforms for feeding bison, lay hay, straw, mixed fodder, grain crops and other plants included in their diet. The ban on hunting these animals and their inclusion in the Red Books of various countries of the world, as well as the protection of the world community, gives a minimal chance of increasing their population and preserving the species, although scientists will have to work for many years to achieve their former greatness and distribution in a large territory.
Conclusion
Now you know what a bison is. The photos presented in the article will help to become more familiar with this beast. In addition, we examined the subspecies of this mammal and what the bison eats. The animal, as you may have noticed, mainly eats the bark of trees and plants.