Shoshone Buffalo Return | Wyoming’s Native Americans

In 2016, the Eastern Shoshone Tribe took an important step to bring back North American bison to their land on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. Ten bison were returned to the reservation for the first time since 1885 when millions of bison were wiped out as part of U.S. government policies aimed at removing Native American tribes from their lands.

The reintroduction was a complex process that raised concerns from local cattle ranchers about grazing competition and disease transmission. The Eastern Shoshone worked with the local community to address these challenges.

Today, the tribes continue to grow the bison population as part of a conservation effort and effort to restore cultural practices.

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