Restoring Bison, Restoring Creation

During the settlement of the West, bison were nearly wiped off the face of the earth. This event was and remains a shameful chapter in the American story, haunting us to this day. Yet, happily, these massive, shaggy ungulates have evaded their near extinction and are now coming upon better times, as they surge in renewed numbers across the Montana landscape. While some are thriving in herds that are being given relative freedom to roam, think of Yellowstone Park or the American Prairie Reserve, the majority find themselves being managed as commercial livestock on smaller, enclosed parcels of grazing land. On June 26th, I hitched a ride with Roland Kroos, along with members of the Creation Care Team of Bozeman’s Hope Lutheran Church, to visit an example of the latter.

Skoglund and Kroos

The North Bridger Bison Ranch, owned and managed by Matt and Sara Skoglund, runs 150 head of bison on 1200 acres of land, roughly two square miles. With the help of Kroos’s expertise, the Skoglunds have not only been successful in making a go of it financially but, in doing so and with the help of the bison themselves, are restoring biodiversity and fertility to their land. Grazing animals, Kroos reminds us, whether they be bison or cattle, co-evolved with grasslands. But there is an art to keeping grazing animals in tune with their preferred landscape, something Kroos knows a lot about.

In his former life, Matt was an environmental lawyer who grew up in the big city - Chicago - far from the sagebrush and mountains of the Shield Valley. Listening to Matt speak of his relationship with the bison and the life they have made possible for him and his family, it’s hard not to think of this ranch as the outcome of the Skoglund’s own personal leap of faith, faith in the bison, faith in the land, and faith in how humans might better comport themselves in making a go of it in creation.

Needless to say, bison, even as they are making a comeback, instigate controversy. When asked about how the landholders surrounding the Skoglund homestead view living in proximity to a herd of bison, Matt responds: “At the end of the day, we all share a love for this land, and my neighbors have witnessed how hard we are working.” This is good news, given the sometimes negative reactions to the re-introduction of bison that has been experienced across the state in recent times.

For me, one of the highlights of the trip occurs when Matt takes us to an area where the remains of field slaughtered bison, after their meat has been delivered to the processor, are left to find their way, with a rich store of nutrients, back into the land. “We recycle the bison back into the soil,” he explains. He points out a circle of earthy smelling, green duff about an inch thick and five feet in diameter, where the innards of the most recent kill has been deposited. In less than a week the crows and other scavengers have made off with all but the grassy stomach contents and a few scattered bones. When I observe that the area, across which over the years the remains of dozens of animals have been set out after their deaths, seems holy, Matt agrees. “The holiness of the gut pile,” he observes.

This strange, unexpected holiness is no small thing. If the biblical injunction for we humans runs “from ashes to ashes, and dust to dust,” the Skoglunds remind us that for bison we would do well to add, “and from grass to grass.” As Aldo Leopold observed now nearly a century ago, the very survival of the prairie depends on our remaining true to its eco-dynamic processes. In doing so, we are implored to think of the various animals and plants with whom we share the land as “fellow biotic citizens,” as each living kind contributes to the health and thriving of the living world in a manner that it is impossible to replicate through human actions alone. We are all in this together. And this still includes, thankfully, the bison!

There is so much more to report about the Skogland’s amazing project, including how meat can be purchased for those interested in buying at least a quarter of an animal. The reader is directed to the North Bridger Bison Ranch website for further information, including an informative blog and the chance to subscribe to the ranch’s newsletter: https://www.northbridgerbison.com/