In 1993, 300 bison were released into the Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in Oklahoma, a 39,000-acre site within the Osage Reservation. The herd now ranges from about 2,100 in winter to 2,700 in summer. Their grazing, wallowing, and dung help maintain plant diversity, build soil carbon, and reduce wildfire fuel. The story explains how the prairie's root-heavy plants keep carbon underground, and how beetles pull bison dung into the soil. Controlled burns and bison grazing together mimic the natural management that shaped this landscape. For anyone tracking land-based carbon or ecosystem restoration, this is a concrete example of how grazing animals can support climate and biodiversity goals.
