Copyright © 2001 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

By two thirty on Wednesday afternoon, seven wild and free-roaming bison were captured by the Montana Department of Livestock (DOL) and cooperating agencies, while others were being chased in an effort to capture them as well. Using a helicopter and snowmobiles, DOL agents chased bison several miles to the bison capture facility at Horse Butte, capturing two bison and losing others en route to the bison trap. Four activists were arrested when they allegedly turned eight bison around, saving them from capture and potential slaughter. Four more volunteers with the Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC) were arrested later with unknown charges.

"The DOL resorted to hazing bison in an extremely disturbing manner for all species in the area. They are wasting taxpayer money and harassing wildlife by hazing bison out of an area where there are never cattle, while insisting that they are protecting cattle from bison and brucellosis," stated BFC spokesperson Summer Nelson.

One day prior to DOL activities two moose, a cow and calf, were feeding one hundred feet away on the same tributary as several bull bison on the Madison River. On the same day more than 20 bald eagles were observed foraging and in mating flights over the same area of the river. Since January of 2001 BFC volunteers have documented over 100 sightings of threatened bald eagles along the Madison River west of highway 191 and along the Horse Butte Peninsula.

Further wildlife disturbance was visible during today's helicopter hazing. BFC spokesperson Mike Mease stated that "We stood there and witnessed at least ten Forest Service law enforcement officers watch a minimum of 150 trumpeter swans get flushed off of the open water where they were resting. They flew away from the helicopter more than three miles northwest over Horse Butte. When we asked the officials if they were going to do something about it, none of them responded."

Trumpeter swans are considered a sensitive species under the endangered species act and are monitored closely by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Montana claims that such measures are necessary to protect cattle from receiving brucellosis from bison and plans to spend over 40 million dollars at taxpayer expense in the next 15 years to manage wild bison. While Montana insists that bison are a threat to cattle and the state's brucellosis-free status, both species as well as elk carrying brucellosis, have co-mingled for over 40 years in Jackson, WY without a case of brucellosis transmission between the species. There has never been a documented case of transmission from bison to cattle in a natural setting.

The summer grazing on Horse Butte amounts to 172 cow/calf pairs. This grazing allotment brings in less than $800 to the U.S. Treasury. The USDA does not have the legal authority to revoke Montana's status based solely on the presence of potentially exposed wildlife in the state. Thus, Montana's fears and actions are unjustified and unsupported by science.

Buffalo Field Campaign volunteers defend the buffalo on their traditional winter habitat and advocate for their protection. BFC is the only group working in the field every day to stop the slaughter of Yellowstone's wild buffalo.

Video and still photos available upon request.