Meals at the summer sun dance ceremonies on the Eastern Shoshone tribe’s lands in Wyoming have been missing a crucial element of their sacred rituals for years: homegrown bison. However, this year marks a significant change as meals at the annual ceremonies will now feature bison meat harvested from the tribe’s own lands for the first time in 138 years. The restoration of bison herds is an important step in the healing and cultural revival of Indigenous tribes across the United States and Canada.
The Eastern Shoshone tribe’s herd of bison is managed by Jason Baldes, who emphasizes the significance of having the animal back in their lives. Bison hold great spiritual and cultural importance for the Shoshone and other Native Americans, and their return symbolizes the reunion of a long-lost relative. The restoration of bison herds is not only a cultural and spiritual endeavor but also brings conservation benefits to grassland ecosystems where they once played a vital ecological role.
The restoration of bison herds on tribal lands also confronts a dark history of repression and attempts to eliminate Indigenous tribes. The near extinction of bison was part of a campaign to subjugate Native Americans, starve them into submission, and seize their lands. By reintroducing bison to tribes and communities, healing and restoration can begin.
North America was once home to an estimated 30 to 60 million plains bison before a mass slaughter began in the late 1700s. This devastation moved westward across the continent, leaving only about 281 plains bison by the late 1880s. Today, commercial herds number around 420,000, with an additional 20,000 in conservation herds that have never interbred with cattle. However, the conservation herd numbers have remained stagnant since 1935, and the U.S. Interior Department states that bison are functionally extinct in grasslands and within their co-evolved human cultures.
Despite these challenges, the transfer of conservation bison to Native American tribes has accelerated in recent years, thanks to cross-border buffalo treaties and collaborative efforts. The InterTribal Buffalo Council, consisting of 80 tribes across 20 U.S. states, has transferred around 5,000 bison over the past five years. This progress is largely attributed to the leadership of Indigenous people in the restoration efforts.
In the United States, tribes have been receiving conservation bison from government agencies, nonprofits, and other tribes. The recent bison conservation order from Interior Secretary Deb Haaland provides further support to tribal bison restoration, including a $25 million funding allocation. Bison meat harvested from Native American lands is also being sold or donated, contributing to the well-being and sustenance of Indigenous communities.
Tribes like the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project and the Yuchi tribe in Oklahoma have been working diligently to rebuild their bison herds. These efforts not only aim to reconnect Indigenous youth with their culture but also reestablish the cultural and spiritual bonds between the tribes and the bison that were once forcibly severed.
The restoration of tribal bison herds is breathing new life into sacred rituals like the sun dance. The Eastern Shoshone tribe’s sun dances, for example, will feature locally harvested bison this summer for the first time since 1885. The sun dance holds deep significance for the Eastern Shoshone, as it is rooted in a legend involving bison. The presence of bison, both in the meals and the symbolic bison head in the sweat lodge, amplifies the spiritual power and medicine of the rituals.
Overall, the restoration of bison herds on tribal lands represents a powerful step towards healing, cultural revival, and environmental conservation. By reclaiming their connection to this iconic animal, Indigenous tribes are reclaiming their heritage, spirituality, and resilience.
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