American Indians rediscovering the long-revered bison

MUSCODA, Wis. — A bison herd bunches up big and dark against the snow-covered prairie as members of the Ho-Chunk Nation in pickup trucks and tractors form a line behind the imposing beasts.

The bison anxiously eye the men and the machines.

But a spiritual connection explains why American Indian and bison have come face-to-face on this cold December day. While trucks and tractors have replaced horses for herding purposes, history is coming full circle.

The roundup and weigh-in of bison last week is intended to ensure the health of the majestic creatures. The Ho-Chunk are reintroducing them to better feed a people plagued by heart disease and diabetes — diseases that accompany high-carb, fast-food diets not native to American Indian culture. American bison, also known as buffalo, for centuries were central to the American Indian diet until herds were slaughtered by settlers and the U.S. military moved tribes onto reservations in the 1800s.

The Ho-Chunk — which vaccinated about 120 bison in last week's roundup — are among 57 tribes in 19 states working to bring back bison to tribal lands.

"We believe that when the buffalo come back, everything else will come back," including the health of the people, said Richard Snake, herd manager for the Ho-Chunk's Muscoda Bison Prairie 1 Ranch along the Wisconsin River bottom in southwestern Wisconsin. Bison meat is lower in fat and calories than beef, pork or chicken, with a flavor similar to beef, only richer and sweeter.

"If you watch old movies, you never see a chubby Indian or a sick Indian," Snake said matter-of-factly.

In some tribes, half the adults have diabetes, according to the South Dakota-based InterTribal Bison Cooperative, which is coordinating and assisting efforts to return bison to tribal lands across America.

American Indians are more than twice as likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tribal leaders attribute the higher risk to genetics and the move to reservations, which led to a more sedentary lifestyle and shifted diets rich in protein to high-starch foods made with refined flour.

During last year's roundup, five injured bison had to be killed because they were trampled or gored by stronger bison trying to escape the steel chute where they are vaccinated against illnesses common to cattle, and microchips are inserted to track health information.

Despite their considerable heft — some weigh a ton or more — bison are agile creatures capable of bounding over 6-foot-high tension steel fences that otherwise keep them from roaming away from the ranch. They also can quickly build up a 35-mph head of steam to destroy a truck in their path if they want to.

The roundup started with a bribe of "candy corn" — a mixture of molasses, corn and oats to lure the bison from one large pasture to another pasture closer to where they were to be vaccinated. (Bison have a keen sense of smell.) The annual roundup occurs in December to avoid additional stress on the animals from hot weather. The Ho-Chunk use tractors and trucks because their horses aren't trained to herd bison. Otherwise, they have little contact with the animals, to keep them wild.

Dozens of people watched the animals being moved from the holding pen into the chute, including tribal members young and old who had never seen a bison up close.

This herd started in 1997 with four animals and grew to 385 a few years ago, Snake said. It provides naturally raised meat free of charge to tribal elderly meal sites and to Ho-Chunk community and ceremonial programs.

"In our traditional way of life, we hold the buffalo in high esteem," Tribal Chief Clayton Winneshiek said. "It is recognized as a spirit blessed by our creator and given to us to use."

The Ho-Chunk are restoring native prairie grasses in pastures where the bison roam. The Muscoda ranch is on 642 acres that the 6,600-member tribe, formerly known as the Winnebago, purchased in 1994 with profits from tribal casinos.

The Ho-Chunk's aboriginal territory once covered several million acres in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois.

Tribal leaders are eagerly awaiting the return of 1,550 aboriginal acres from the former Badger Army Ammunition plant near Baraboo, declared surplus by the Army after almost 25 years of inactivity. Indian mounds there are believed to have been built by ancestors of the Ho-Chunk.

The Ho-Chunk hope to establish a herd of about 1,000 bison on the Baraboo land within the next several years to produce more meat for the people, and possibly to sell it commercially outside the tribe.

Bison meat in mainstream groceries costs $3.50 to $5.50 per pound, about twice as much as ground beef. It is catching on as a healthful alternative to beef.

To re-establish healthy bison populations on tribal lands is to help heal the spirit of both the Indian people and the bison, according to the InterTribal Bison Cooperative in South Dakota.

More than 60 million bison roamed North America before 1600, but the number dwindled to 500 before ranchers, state and federal parks, and tribes started bringing back the animal.

Wisconsin has about 125 commercial herds of varying sizes — roughly 9,000 bison total, according to the Wisconsin Bison Producers Association. Each animal requires roughly 1.5 to 2 acres of pasture for grazing here, said state association President Mark Schultz. Bison meat is more expensive partly because of limited supply, but also because one animal alone eats $300 to $400 worth of hay per winter, Schultz said.

To Indian people, bison represent their spirit and remind them they once were self-sufficient when they lived in harmony with nature, Winneshiek said.