Early in the 19th century, about 60 million bison lived on the Great Plains in North America. They were central to the existence of the Plains people. Then from 1830 to 1889 they neared extinction, with less than 1,000 still roaming. Today, they are a protected animal and there are well over 200,000 living in protected areas and ranches.
· I live in North America, however, I have some close relatives in Europe. · I live in plains regions. I am able to survive cold winters. · I roam out in the open on the Great Plains of North America, mostly in protected areas and private ranches. · I have a massive head, a hump over my front shoulders and sharply pointed horns. · I have a thick coat of dark brown and black hair. · I am about 6.5 feet (2 meters) tall and about 9-12 feet (2.7-3.7 meters) long. · I'm quite heavy. I can weigh 1800-2400 pounds (850-1100 kg). · I eat lots leaves and lots of grass. · I have help getting protection now, because I was near extinction. But I do have horns and I usually hang out in a group with my friends. · I first came to North American in prehistoric times when I crossed the Bering Strait land bridge from Eurasia.