BISON
Bison bison
State Park Service
The North Carolina Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Class: Mammal
Family: Bovidae
Size: weight = 800-2000 lbs height 5-6 feet at shoulder
Habitat: grasslands, open woodlands, and semi-desert environments
Diet: herbivorous-eats plants-grasses, leaves, and sedges
Life Span: 18-22 years in the wild
Bison Basics:
Bison have poor eyesight, but excellent senses of hearing and smell.
Bison can run up to 35 mph.
Bison are the largest land mammal in North America.
Because Eastern bison were extinct by
the mid 18006, Western bison live in the
Animal Forest. Eastern bison, which lived in this area when the settlers landed, were larger and darker than their Western relatives.
Bison have been called buffalo since they were first spotted in North America because bison looked like buffalo to early settlers, although there are no buffalo species native to North America.
ELK Cervus elaphus
South Carolinai
State Park Service
Courtesy of USFWS
Class: Mammal
Family: Cervidae
Size: weight = 400-1000 lbs height 4-5 feet at shoulder
Habitat: open woodlands and forested areas
Diet: herbivorous-eats plants-grasses, sedges, and flowers
Life Span: 18-20 years in the wild
Elk Essentials:
Elk antlers can weigh up to 40 pounds.
The more symmetrical a bull elk's antlers are, the healthier he is.
An elk calf weighs about 35 lbs at birth and can gain up to 2 lbs per day for the first few weeks of its life...
Male elk shed their antlers each year, usually in late winter or early spring.
Before breeding season begins, they grow them back. The size of the animal's antlers, also known as a "rack" increases every season as he matures.