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Animal profile

European bison

Bison bonasus

MammaliaMixed lowland forest with clearings, meadow and river valleyNear Threatened

Field profile

The European bison, or wisent, is the continent's heaviest land mammal, taller and longer-legged than its American relative and more of a browser. Every living animal descends from a captive population rebuilt after the species was lost in the wild.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2023-06-16

European bison

Every European bison descends from twelve animals

The last free-living European bison was shot in 1927. The species survived only in zoos and private parks, and the entire population now running in European forests traces back to a dozen founders whose pedigrees were recorded by hand.

Read with evidence →

European bison | Daily Animal Facts