Wranglin’ bison | Parks Canada
In a carefully orchestrated operation at Elk Island National Park in Alberta, Canada, 44 young wood bison were wrangled onto transport trailers this week where they were set to begin a 40-hour journey to their new home in Alaska’s Minto Flats State Game Refuge. The move marks the fourth transfer of wood bison from Elk Island to Alaska and is part of a decades-long international partnership to restore the species to part of its historic North American range.
Handling the young bison like cattle, the animals were separated, sorted, and carefully handled at the park before getting a mild tranquilizer shot to calm their nerves ahead of the long road trip. Parks Canada and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game have coordinated the logistics for months, with the goal of bolstering both Alaska’s emerging wild herds and the global security of wood bison.
“The Government of Canada is committed to biodiversity and the long-term recovery of bison through Indigenous and international partnerships,” said the Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Nature. “The transfer of bison from Elk Island National Park will bolster the global security of the species and ensure these iconic animals roam for generations to come.”
Their chariot awaits | Parks Canada
Wood bison, which are a larger-bodied subspecies distinct from plains bison, once roamed widely across Alaska and northern Canada. Paleontological, archaeological, and historical records confirm their presence in Interior Alaska, but the animals disappeared from the state by the early 20th century due to a combination of overhunting and habitat loss. By the 1940s, wood bison were widely believed to be extinct until a small remnant herd of about 200 was discovered in a remote corner of Canada’s Wood Buffalo National Park area in 1957.
Canada moved swiftly to protect the survivors and a notably disease-free population was established at Elk Island National Park near Edmonton, which has since become the world’s primary source of genetically pure, healthy wood bison for conservation. The park has maintained separate herds of both wood bison and plains bison for over a century, playing a central role in the species’ recovery from near-extinction when global numbers had fallen below 1,000 animals.
“The State of Alaska will be forever grateful that the Government of Canada took the steps to save the last remaining wood bison and later established a disease-free population at Elk Island National Park to propagate wood bison for release elsewhere,” Tom Seaton, ADF&G’s wood bison project biologist said.
Alaska began exploring restoration in the early 1990s when ADF&G launched historical research, community consultations, habitat assessments, and partnerships with Canadian experts. After years of planning, environmental reviews, and navigating Endangered Species Act requirements, the state imported its first group of wood bison from Elk Island in 2008. That inaugural import saw 53 animals join an earlier smaller cohort at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center in Portage. The AWCC provided critical captive-breeding space on 250 dedicated acres while the project navigated regulatory hurdles.
Parks Canada
Then about seven years later, a breakthrough. After the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service designated the Alaska population as a “nonessential experimental population” under the ESA, 130 wood bison were transported by truck, plane, and barge to the remote Lower Innoko and Yukon Rivers area in western Alaska. The 2015 import marked the first time in roughly a century that wood bison officially roamed wild in the state.
A second wild herd was established more recently in the Minto Flats State Game Refuge, roughly 50 miles southwest of Fairbanks, through a combination of new Canadian imports and captive animals moved from facilities like AWCC and the University of Alaska Fairbanks Large Animal Research Station.
Today, Elk Island’s disease-free wood bison remain the backbone of the reintroduction program. The park alternates transfers between wood and plains bison in alternating years and has sent animals to Indigenous communities, other parks, and conservation projects across North America. Alaska’s agreement with Canada calls for surplus calves in even-numbered years (2024, 2026, 2028), ensuring a steady supply for both augmentation and new herds.
“Wood bison used to widely roam across northern landscapes and with the project here, working with the state of Alaska to help restore these animals carries a real deep sense of purpose and meaning,” Elk Island National Park Superintendent Dale Kirkland said.
As of right now, Alaska is home to more than 170 wood bison across two wild herds and about 50 in captivity—all of which are either direct imports of descendents of Elk Island stock.
