Wild Bison Are Returning to England’s Forests For First Time in 6,000 Years

[Michie]

A relative of the iconic beast that roams the American Great Plains is going to be released in an ancient forest in Kent, England—where they haven’t resided for 6,000 years.

But the four animals won’t be arriving by way of South Dakota or Wyoming because Europe has their own subspecies—the European wood bison.

The project is slated to begin in Spring of 2022, when a single male Bison bonasus and three females arriving from Poland and the Netherlands will be allowed to roam and reproduce naturally in the remaining wilds of Britain—and it is hoped that their presence will ignite a chain reaction throughout the forest.

Continued below.
Wild Bison Are Returning to England’s Forests For First Time in 6,000 Years

 

[FrumiousBandersnatch]

That's great news - I often go walking in Blean Woods, so it will be interesting to see bison there...

 

[public hermit]

That is so cool.

 

[Lost4words]

My ancestors used to herd them!

 

[FrumiousBandersnatch]

The bison will come from Poland? I want to tell a pollack joke I really really want to.

Please don't.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

This sort of thing has the potential to create something amazing... or do horrendous things to the ecology of that area of Britain.
Britain has not had large grazing animals such as the bison for 6,000 years. There really is no telling what the effect would be.

... although imagine the size of the steaks...

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Do you by any chance know what an auroch is?

A big cow. Like... huge. Big horns too.
And there's a fair bit of debate on when they went extinct in Britain: some people say Bronze age, some say Iron Age, some say as early as 3000 years ago, some say as late as 1500 BC.

BUT, my main point is: Britain and the British ecosystem has not had a significant number of large terrestrial grazing herbivores for a long time, so we have no real clue to what effect they could have if allowed to roam free in England (maybe they trample a politician or two, who knows).

I know that bison (or buffalo) are being reared in Wales, but that's as livestock, not wild animals.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

I understand that, I think the reintroduction could potentially have risks too. I mention the Autochs because back in the 30's people were all for that and thought it was the coolest thing ever. Isn't it neat how our understanding of ecology had evolved in 90 years.

For some reason, a lot of people are hellbent on reintroducing animals that went extinct in an area for... reasons.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Like the mammoths? You got to remember that everyone wants to go back in time. That's why Jurassic park was so appealing.
However I think the bison would be harmless since England doses have a tradition of grazing cattle.

Jurassic Park is a prime, though fictional example, of why we shouldn't bring back extinct animals. We have ZERO clue of how they'd react to the modern world and they likely would get violent.
The cattle thing is definitely something I can agree with, and I have a hope that we at least put in some lessons that the Poles learnt when dealing with their bison to minimize harmful contact between the bison and human populations.

 

[Radagast]

Do you by any chance know what an auroch is?

It's the wild animal from which the cow was domesticated.

The key words there are "wild animal."

 

[Radagast]

You know the Germans tried to back breed them

"Why?" I ask myself.

 

[Radagast]

But the four animals won’t be arriving by way of South Dakota or Wyoming because Europe has their own subspecies—the European wood bison.

Own species, since Bison bonasus is a species.

 

[Hans Blaster]

"Why?" I ask myself.

Probably so they could survive in the wild and be restored to some auroch appropriate ecosystem. (THought I read that somewhere years go.) Domestic cows are docile and dumb.

 

[Radagast]

Probably so they could survive in the wild

Why?

to some auroch appropriate ecosystem

And what does that mean, in a densely populated country like Germany?

Domestic cows are docile and dumb.

Yes, and even then they sometimes kill people.

Imagine them more aggressive and with larger horns.

Now imagine them wandering into farmland and interacting with human beings.

 

[Hans Blaster]

Why?



And what does that mean, in a densely populated country like Germany?



Yes, and even then they sometimes kill people.

Imagine them more aggressive and with larger horns.

Now imagine them wandering into farmland and interacting with human beings.

I don't think Aurochs are native to Germany. Perhaps they were thinking about repopulating the south Asian Steppe. I don't know. I'm just speculating.

 

[Radagast]

I don't think Aurochs are native to Germany.

Native to all of Europe, plus more. The name "ūrochse" is German.

 

[Hans Blaster]

Native to all of Europe, plus more.

[JohnnyCarson] I did not know that [/JohnnyCarson]

 

[Hans Blaster]

Specifically for the aurochs the why was tied into Nazi idology and the mythos of the "Aryan" race. Remember the Nazis were decidedly NonChristian especially Himmler. This guy essentially came up with a comic book type origin story for the Germanic race that claimed the Germans were a wilder fiercer people who came into a wild fierce land. Fun fact Himmler use to say that Christianity is the cedar of Lebanon grafted to the mighty oak of the Germanic people. The reintroduction, or more specifically the back breeding of the Auroch was meant to parallel the reemergence of that fiercer Aryan race of Germans
Or at least that's what Himmler and his buddy Girbbles wanted the world to believe.

Allrighty then. I did not-see that coming.

This thread had taken an odd turn.

 

[Radagast]

Specifically for the aurochs the why was tied into Nazi idology and the mythos of the "Aryan" race.

Well, the aurochs breeding started before Hitler, in the 1920s, but Lutz Heck was indeed a Nazi and a buddy of Hermann Göring: Lutz Heck - Wikipedia

Edit: I was wrong about Hitler. Apparently he led the Nazis from 1921.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Seriously though, another poster asked why some people are hell bent on reintroducing long gone species despite the ecological ramifications. National pride is a huge one.

Oh, it's definitely not national pride that is the reason for Britain doing this.