And now:Sonja Keohane <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
From the Bozeman Chronicle: <http://www3.gomontana.com/>
Bison moved for first time
By SCOTT McMILLIONChronicle
Staff Writer
02/26/1999
Two bull bison that have been "harassing horses and threatening to cause
property damage" in the West Yellowstone area will get a long ride to deep
inside Yellowstone National Park today, a Montana Department of Livestock
official said Thursday.
"I'm going to load them up, I'm going to haul them to Gardiner and I'm
going to release them in Yellowstone National Park," said Rob Tierney, who
supervises DOL bison operations in the West Yellowstone area.
That will mean a road trip of about 180 miles for the animals.
This is the first time the National Park Service has allowed such a
transplant, though DOL has proposed it a number of times, State
Veterinarian Arnold Gertonson said.
He added that he'd like to do it more often.
When deep snow and other circumstances make it impractical to haze bison,
"we will be able to protect more bison in the long run if we can transport
them further back into the park," Gertonson said.
Yellowstone Superintendent Mike Finley said in a Thursday letter that the
Park Service is "happy to assist" in an "unusual and specific private
property and human safety issue."
Two other bison that tested positive for exposure to the disease
brucellosis will be shipped to slaughter today as well, Tierney said.
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