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| A Male Bison on Santa Catalina Island Courtesy of www.islaearth.org; photo by Carlos de la Rosa |
Bison, which once freely roamed the American West, has risen to a new prominence since President Obama signed the National Bison Legacy Act into law last week on May 9. The legislation designates the American bison as the national mammal of the United States.
Often confused with buffalo, according to Live Science magazine bison were called “bufello” by early American settlers due to some similarities between the American bison and the Asian and African buffalo species. Native to the Great Plains, American bison found their way to the isolated Santa Catalina Island—a 22-mile island off the coast of southern California—in 1924.
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| Santa Catalina Island off the Southern California Coast, 2016 Map data © 2016 Google |
In the illustrated story below, we celebrate the elevated status of these dark furry mammals in our state and nation.