Update from the Field

Update from the Field – April 28, 2022

First newborn buffalo calf arrives ~ more on the way!

A perilous night of close calls for buffalo crossing the highways

Clash of the Agencies – Report on the Government’s Bison Management meeting

Thank you for supporting our Media Team!

Give Big Online 24-hour Fundraiser for BFC kicks off Thursday, May 5

Volunteers needed! Headquarters in West Yellowstone, MT

First newborn buffalo calf arrives ~ more on the way!
We have our first verified calf of the year to report from the field! The newborn arrived amidst a huge migration of buffalo into Hebgen Basin. The commencing of the calving season is coming on the heels of more vehicle traffic cutting across the buffalo’s migration path. BFC’s volunteer field patrols are spending long days and nights helping multiple family groups navigate the perils of crossing highways 191 and 287. We have seen a big increase in near miss collisions. Our volunteers are watching over high risk areas and deploying our Buffalo on Road signs to give travelers a heads up and a brake for buffalo to safely cross.

A perilous night of close calls for buffalo crossing the highways
Night patrol witnessed one of the single largest migrations of buffalo in our 25 years in the field. With the sun setting and night coming on, buffalo were on the roads everywhere with patrol deploying signage up and down the highways and helping different family groups cross to safer places. There were too many close calls with speeding 18-wheeler semi-trailer trucks and other vehicles. It was a blessing to hear morning patrol report no buffalo were hit by vehicles overnight, with our volunteers providing a safe crossing for the first newborn buffalo calf of the season. You can lend your voice to implementing wildlife safe passages by taking action today

Core to our duties, this time of the migration, we assist in safety while the herd finds the best calving grounds and safe forage areas. We especially watch over the areas where we keep our signage for vulnerable intersections throughout the travel paths and grazing areas enjoyed by the year's first generation. We provide the Highway signs to warn motorists, not always heeded, we have seen several close calls in the dusk and into the night as the buffalo range to their bedtimes.

Clash of the Agencies – Report on the Government’s Bison Management Meeting
Buffalo Field Campaign attended the government’s Interagency Bison Management Plan meeting in Bozeman, Montana, on April 13. Like all other prior meetings, we were given three minutes to say our piece while representatives of various government agencies and Tribes jumped into lengthy disagreements over several topics. The public comment period felt rushed. Like many government meetings, not much changed after the closing statements were made. The meeting covered “success stories” of quarantine and transfer, to concerns over hunting buffalo in Gardiner and Hebgen basins, Montana’s intolerance zones for buffalo, and the low level of buffalo migration this season. Tribal voices expressed frustration at Yellowstone National Park’s early trapping of buffalo in Gardiner Basin. The Park and Montana Department of Livestock dived into the quagmire of quarantine, with questions raised about faster procedures, and the unfair and disparate treatment of buffalo, when compared to how brucellosis in cattle is treated.

The Park’s new bison management plan was a focus of contention with the Montana Department of Livestock reps vehemently expressing disdain for the Park’s alternatives. In turn, the Park and other members cited the Montana Department of Livestock's poor level of communication during the drafting of the new plan. It was truly a moment when the atmosphere openly turned on the livestock agency with the Park telling it as it is: that the Department of Livestock holds an over-influential hand in buffalo management. One representative at the table went on to declare buffalo being treated as livestock is “a fatal flaw in wildlife management in North America ... We probably wouldn’t even be here if buffalo were wildlife from the get go . . .” This meeting was brimming with frustration from all parties attending. Read more

Thank you for supporting our Media Team!
A special thank you to our supporters who stepped up and donated to BFC in support of our media team! Your generous contributions have given us additional resources to develop our motion picture and field documentary capabilities. Our media team plays an instrumental role in the field, in the political and legislative arena, in the courts, and in the public mind.

This provides a window to our field operations and reporting to our directors and board to help guide the best use of resources as we continue on our mission to stop the harassment and slaughter of Yellowstone’s wild buffalo herds; protect the natural habitat of wild, free-roaming buffalo and other native wildlife; and work with all people—especially Indigenous Nations—to honor and protect the sacredness of the wild buffalo.

Thank you for your support!

Give Big Online 24-hour Fundraiser for the BFC kicks off Thursday, May 5

Give Big is hosting a 24-hour fundraiser for Buffalo Field Campaign. The online fundraiser kicks off Thursday, May 5. BFC Board member and family Kasi, Jesse, and Elkin Craddock will match your donations dollar for dollar up to $2,000.
Help protect and defend the Buffalo by giving to BFC!

Volunteers needed! Headquarters in West Yellowstone, MT

BFC’s Road Sign program alerting travelers of Buffalo On Road is in full swing, running late into the night until the Buffalo bed down.

Get involved

Join the Buffalo Backbone Program

As part of Buffalo Field Campaign, you are a member of a Family~A Herd~ where each person is encouraged & given opportunities to help protect the Buffalo in their own unique way. From volunteering in the field to taking action online to donating monthly as part of our Buffalo Backbone Program, you can connect to place, wildlife, family, and purpose…and be a part of the bigger solution!

Coffalo Coffee has partnered with Buffalo Field Campaign to create the monthly Beans for Buffalo program. The first Tuesday of every month, Coffalo Coffee will offer 10% off all coffee purchased from their website and will also donate 10% of the proceeds to Buffalo Field Campaign. You can enjoy freshly roasted coffee at a discount while also helping save Yellowstone's wild buffalo. Mark your calendar or set a reminder on your phone for the first Tuesday of the month so you don't miss out. On May 3rd, visit www.coffalo.com
and order your coffee.
Just enter the code BEANS4BUFFALO at checkout to save 10% on your order. 10% of your purchase will directly support BFC's mission.

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