Bison Reintroduction

Added: 2026-06-03

[00:00:04]The buffalo, Tatanka Oyate, Pte Oyate, gave themselves to us in our creation story.

[00:00:12]There was a great race around the Black Hills between the two-legged and the four-legged.

[00:00:17]And the buffalo would have won it, but because a magpie, who represented the two-leggeds, was on its back. And at the very end, flew to win that race.

[00:00:28]That buffalo then said, "We give ourselves to you."

[00:00:32]We were told to use the whole relative, never let it go to waste.

[00:00:35]>> [music] >> Not just food, but we can use the hide for teepees and the clothing and bladder and stomach for bags, [music] droppings for fuel to their bones as weapons and tools.

[00:00:48]The skull is a part [music] of our ceremonies.

[00:00:51]Without them, there would be no life for us.

[00:00:56]>> [music] >> As a way of controlling the indigenous [music] people of the plains, the US government went about killing off the bison.

[00:01:08]It went from between 40 and 60 million bison in North America [music] down to maybe a couple hundred.

[00:01:16]It was a tragedy for the prairie ecosystem and the Dakota people because their economy was based on the bison.

[00:01:24]And they consider the bison a relative.

[00:01:27]And so, it's always been a dream to bring the bison back.

[00:01:32]We have 150 acres of prairie at Spring Lake Park Reserve in Dakota County. And so, we did a strategic plan, engaged the Minnesota Bison Collaborative, and applied for grant from the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund.

[00:01:49]We started out the project looking purely at the ecological part of it.

[00:01:55]But along the way, we received questions about how were we engaging local [clears throat] tribal communities. So, we reached out to the Dakota people in this part of Minnesota, and they invited us down to their bison project, and they came up here.

[00:02:15]When we bring the buffalo into different spaces in collaboration with non-Indigenous communities, it comes back to education. It's how we grow with one another.

[00:02:24]By my tribe, Prairie Island, helping assist with these relatives here, that helps create that relationship with Dakota County. We have that opportunity to share our culture and share why the buffalo are important to us.

[00:02:40]We started out with eight animals, which were donated to the county from the state parks and the Zollman Zoo. And now we are at 11.

[00:02:50]Carly Duwick is our bison technician.

[00:02:55]She puts her eyes on the bison at least once a week to make sure that they are safe and healthy. She'll make sure that the fences are [music] up and stable. If there are any issues out on the prairie, she'll make note of that.

[00:03:11]Designing the paddock system was probably the most difficult thing. We had to break up that 150 acres into eight different paddocks.

[00:03:20]The Mississippi River Greenway Trail >> [music] >> runs through the park, and we can't have people riding their bikes through [music] the bison range.

[00:03:30]Bison can run 35 mph. They can jump 6 ft in the air. So, we needed a fence [music] that was 7 ft tall.

[00:03:38]We put in 18 gates >> [music] >> and a handling facility that the bison go through each fall >> [music] >> so that a vet can make sure they're healthy.

[00:03:49]One of the great things that the county has done is hired a tribal liaison to help [music] continue discussions from a cultural perspective.

[00:03:58]The bison is one piece of a larger dialogue [music] that I think is just beginning.

[00:04:03]It's good to see that outside relatives are starting to see their importance, [music] whether that's the spiritual connection or what the buffalo can do for the land, being able to replenish the earth, share the medicine that they give. Everybody [music] can attest that when they see those relatives, they feel something, whether they [music] understand it or not. They're more than just a selfie to take.

[00:04:29]They have such an impact on the prairie ecosystem. For instance, their wallows produce these little divots which hold water for other animals and opportunities for early successional plants.

[00:04:44]Their diet allows the forbs or flowers to better compete with the grasses.

[00:04:50]And the more forbs or flowers you have, the more insects, birds, reptiles, and mammals you have out there. The benefits go on and on.

[00:05:01]We believe that >> [music] >> the white buffalo calf woman came to us and helped us find our way of life.

[00:05:09]She brought us the chanupa, the sacred pipe, one of the most important tools in our culture.

[00:05:15]She also gave us the sweat lodge ceremony, sundance ceremony, all of our seven ceremonies that we use in our daily life.

[00:05:23]If we can teach that respect, that honor, that nobility for these relatives, then it's a win.

[00:05:30]I would like to thank the people of Minnesota for the environment and natural resources [music] trust fund. I would encourage people to come out to Spring Lake Park and learn about the prairie, >> [music] >> learn about bison, learn about the Dakota people and who we all are and [music] where we came from.