Bison (Bison bison) restoration and management options on the south unit and adjacent range units of Badlands National Park in South Dakota: A technical evaluation
Licht DS. 2014. Bison (Bison bison) restoration and management options on the south unit and adjacent range units of Badlands National Park in South Dakota: A technical evaluation. Natural Resource Report. NPS/BADL/NRR—2014/881. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
A technical evaluation of the ecological benefits and impacts of reintroducing bison to the South Unit of Badlands National Park and adjacent lands. The 133,000-acre South Unit of Badlands National Park, located within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in western South Dakota, has been proposed for a bison reintroduction. This document evaluates some of the management options and the ecological and economic benefits and impacts of bison restoration. Three sites, of varying acreage, were evaluated for their capacity to support bison. Using Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) plant productivity data for a normal precipitation year, a forage allocation of 33%, and other assumptions, the three sites could support 854, 3,666, or 5,214 bison (including calves, which comprise about 18% of a herd). This study provides a scientific evaluation of restoring bison to the South Unit of Badlands National Park and adjacent lands. Ultimately a full environmental assessment that considers all concerns and impacts needs to be conducted before decisions should be made. This report tries to facilitate that process wherever possible by identifying and analyzing numerous scenarios and presenting a range of outputs.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Licht, Daniel
- Date of Issue
- 2014-11
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- BADL , NGPN , NRSS
- Keywords
- Badlands National Park, Bison, buffalo, Demographics, Genetics, Model, Oglala Sioux Tribe, Reintroduction, Reservation, Restoration, revenue, South Unit, tribal, Vortex
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Mammals