Return of the Bison

Offers a hopeful view of endangered species, grounded in history and science
Responds to current conservation trends: wildlife corridors, grassland restoration, cultural restoration for the Native American community

The Return of the Bison is the story of how this symbol of the American West was once nearly lost to history and the ongoing journey to bring the bison back from the brink. Author and naturalist Roger Di Silvestro explores the complex story of the bison's decimation and how a growing awareness of their possible extinction formed the roots of many modern approaches to wildlife conservation. Weaving in natural history and a fascinating historical context with figures such as Teddy Roosevelt, George Bird Grinnell, and William T. Hornaday, Di Silvestro traces the decades it took to begin saving the bison, often with little hope and beset by discouraging setbacks. Di Silvestro explores the key role in the story of America's Native peoples, whose fate was intertwined with the bison and whose conservation work is important not only for the animal's recovery but also for his own cultural renewal.

Di Silvestro also examines the fate of the European bison and the latest challenges facing the species in the United States: Are bison doomed to be treated like livestock, fenced in and contained? Or will they be listed as an endangered species, forcing us to treat them like the wild animals they are?