
America’s largest land animal fertilizes—and then mows—its own food. Scientists published a report last week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a science journal. The article says bison spur the growth of the grass they eat. The research could help in the effort to rebuild bison herds in North America.
The bison study took place in Yellowstone National Park. Researchers found that most hoofed mammals must keep migrating to find newer, fresher plant growth. But bison can graze in one area over and over.
Researchers wanted to know why. So they fenced off plots of grass where bison migrate. They compared those no-grazing areas to the grazed ones.
Studies show that the grass where the bison grazed over and over was shorter, denser, and healthier than the other areas.
But there was more to the grass-is-always-greener story.
Remember the lawnmower robot? (See “Robo-Mower Makes Strides.”) God’s giant bison-mowers do even better: Their waste acts as a natural fertilizer. “They drop nutrients back on the landscape, which are then available to plants,” says Yellowstone scientist Chris Geremia.
Keep on munching, bison!
(A herd of bison grazes in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
1st Comment!
This is good. :-)
Cool!
Cool!
This is NA
WOW!! Isn't The Lord Great! To think he made all of that! : )
@NA
Yes!
5th comment
Note to self: get a bison for christmas so I won't have to mow the lawn
@Thomas L
LOL
@ Thomas L
hahaHahahah!!!!! or. If you don't want to ever have any grass to cut! get a hunting dog like mine!! lol!
To Above
that was NA
@ Nadia and Thomas
HaHahAhahahaha!!! Same Nadia! my german shepherd digs up our yard too! ;|
@Everyone
Happy Thanksgiving!!! :)
Janna
That's funny! I went to Yellowstone National Park in May, and there were bison that would walk right next to your car, and they would stop traffic for a really long ways.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
@ Arile
Ya. we have like NO grasss!!!! It's all mud!
@Everyone
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!
three cheers&turkey for everybody LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow short article!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@Nadia
LOL! Yeah, we have a bigger yard so we just have patches of mud everywhere!!! :)
To Above
I feel you!
Everone!
Happy late Thanksgiving!
Early
Merry Christmas! :-) :-)
:-)
Hola. Mi lama Nadia no hablan espanol los sientos.