The Buffalo is the Biggest Land Mammal in N. America

The American buffalo, also called the bison, are the largest surviving terrestrial animal in North America. They have a broad heavy head that is carried low and cannot be raised to shoulder level. The muscular bison has a pronounced hump at the shoulders and shaggy coats of long hair. It grows especially long on the head, neck, and shoulders and usually forms a beard on the chin. Both buffalo sexes have short upcurved horns. Buffalos can weigh up to 2,800 lbs. They are powerful large animals that are sometimes unpredictable. They usually appear peaceful, even lazy, yet they may attack anything without warning or apparent reason. They can move at speeds up to 35 mph and cover long distances at a lumbering gallop, which is sometimes called a stampede. Their usual gait is a plodding walk, but they also trot in a stiff-legged manner or run with a rolling motion. Despite their bulk, buffalos are quite agile and fast.

Buffalos are nomadic grazers that travel in herds. Their typical habitat is open grasslands, as well as sagebrush and scrublands. Buffalos prefer grass and herbs, but they will also eat twigs and leaves. They can graze in hilly or mountainous areas where the slopes are not steep. Buffalos live in small bands, whose basic unit is one or more females and several generations of their offspring. Adult males live on the band’s periphery and form their own small groups. During the mating season, which reaches its height in August, bulls engage in head-butting contests to determine their social dominance. The cow usually gives birth to a single calf in May after about a nine months’ gestation. All members of the band protect the young. Buffalo herds undertake short seasonal migrations, moving southward in winter and then moving back north when warmer weather returns.