bison

(also ‘American buffalo’; plural — the same spelling and pronunciation — ‘bison’ — for the right pronunciation, please click here)

American bison

a kind of large animal – mammal – related to common ox family; with a large head, short horns and huge shoulders with a hump; body covered with rough hair; on average 6.5 feet (2 m) tall at the shoulder and 11 feet (3.5 m) long, and weighs between 500 and 1000 Kg., feeds (eats) on grass, and lives for twenty years; two species – American bison found on the Great Plains of the USA and Canada, and European bison found in parts of Europe

European bison

Both species (kinds) were hunted to near extinction (= killing all the animals so that not even one animal of this kind is found on the earth) in the 19^th and 20^th centuries, but now reintroduced to the wild.

male ~~ bull

female ~~ cow

baby ~~ calf

group ~~ herd, gang, obstinacy

voice (call) ~~ bellow

Special Features:
‘American bison’ is the state animal of Kansas and Oklahoma states in the USA.

“Wisent” is the national animal of Belarus, a country in the Eastern Europe.

The bison was hunted for its skin and bone, and in America, it was hunted not only for skin and bone but also for political reasons. But now bison are raised on the farms for their meat, skin and bone.

The European bison or wisent is smaller than the American bison – 6-7 feet (2 m) tall, 9 feet (3 m) long and weighs 350 – 900 Kg.