Domestic cattle and bison – America’s national mammal – have more in common than previously known, according to two recent scientific studies.
In May, it was reported that even iconic conservation herds like Yellowstone National Park’s and the bison in Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada have a small amount of cattle genes, according to a study by Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences.
Yellowstone bison biologist Chris Geremia said the finding will have no effect on the park’s management or transfer of bison. He said Yellowstone bison are still one of the closest connections to the historic herds that roamed North America for thousands of years. Geremia added that cattle introgression is a reminder of the human destruction of bison by market hunters in the 1800s.
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