Types of Bison in Maryland

There are two living species of wild bison in North America. The American bison (Bison bison) is split into two subspecies: the plains bison, which is smaller and inhabits grasslands and prairie, and the wood bison, which is larger and found in the boreal forests of northern Canada and Alaska. The wood bison is the larger subspecies, weighing up to 2,000 pounds, while plains bison typically weigh around 1,500 pounds. Both are massive, shaggy bovines with humped shoulders, short horns, and thick manes. Neither species occurs naturally in Maryland.

Extremely rarely. Any bison sighting in Maryland would be an escaped or released animal from a private farm or petting zoo. Maryland has no wild herds, no reintroduction programs, and no protected bison habitat. iNaturalist records from Maryland labeled as bison are sparse and unverified, they may be misidentified domestic cattle or goats. If you encounter what appears to be a bison, contact the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to report an escaped animal.

Wild American bison now live only in western states, primarily in the Great Plains and Great Basin. Significant wild populations exist in Yellowstone National Park, which straddles Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho; the National Bison Range in Montana; the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Kansas; and Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota. The largest populations are on tribal lands in Oklahoma and Montana. Canada protects wood bison in the Northwest Territories and British Columbia. Bison have been completely absent from Maryland and the entire eastern United States for over 200 years.

Bison likely never ranged into Maryland in significant numbers, if at all. By the time European colonization began in the 1600s, the wild bison population had already retreated westward, confined primarily to the Great Plains and prairies beyond the Mississippi River. Elk and white-tailed deer were the large ungulates of colonial Maryland and the eastern seaboard. The mass extirpation of bison happened between 1800 and 1890 as westward expansion and commercial hunting reduced tens of millions to fewer than 1,000 animals on the Great Plains.

Between 1800 and 1890, an estimated 30 million American bison were hunted to near extinction. Commercial hunters killed bison for hides, meat, and sport. Railroad companies slaughtered herds to feed railroad workers and to clear land for development. By 1890, only about 500 wild bison remained in the world. Conservation efforts by the U.S. government and private groups in the early 1900s established protected herds in national parks and reserves, allowing the species to recover modestly. Today there are roughly 20,000 wild bison in North America, a fraction of historic numbers, all confined to western and northern protected areas.

Yes. Bison are instantly recognizable by their massive humped shoulders, which are much taller than cattle. Bison have thicker, shaggier coats with a prominent mane on the neck and shoulders. Their horns are smaller and curved differently than cattle horns. Bison are wider and more compact than cattle, with shorter tails and a stockier build. Bison bulls can weigh 1,500 to 2,000 pounds; most cattle are lighter. If you see a large horned bovine in Maryland, it is almost certainly domestic cattle or a bison farm animal, not a wild American bison.

Maryland supports several large wild mammals. White-tailed deer are abundant throughout the state. Black bears live in the western mountains and Garrett County and are increasingly seen in central Maryland. Harbor seals and spotted seals appear in the Chesapeake Bay during winter. River otters have returned to Maryland waterways and are occasionally sighted. Beavers are present in many counties. Foxes, coyotes, and raccoons are common. If you are interested in seeing large, wild animals without traveling west, Maryland offers deer, bears, and seals as authentic native species.

Bison farming exists in the United States, but there is no significant commercial bison ranching industry in Maryland. A handful of small private herds may exist for breeding or personal ownership, but they are not public attractions or managed reserves. Maryland has no state-managed bison population, no bison reserves, and no zoo bison breeding programs of note. Most U.S. bison farming is concentrated in the Great Plains states, particularly South Dakota, Montana, and Oklahoma, where the animals are raised for meat and hides.

No, bison will not return to wild Maryland because the ecological and political conditions necessary for reintroduction do not exist. Maryland lacks the vast, unfenced grasslands bison require to graze and roam. The state's land is fragmented, developed, and managed for human settlement. Bison reintroductions in the United States happen only on large federal reserves in the West, where millions of acres are protected. There are no plans or conservation initiatives to bring bison back to the eastern United States, and doing so would be impractical given current land use and infrastructure.