A portion of Land Between the Lakes’ Bison are destined to leave the pastures of the elk and bison prairie this winter.
The Forest Service will hold a public auction in January to reduce the size of the bison herd by 38. Mostly calves and yearlings are slated for sale, along with a few bulls, cows, and heifers.
LBL Range and Wildlife Technician Curtis Fowler said some people want to try bison out on their farms, some buy them to increase their herd size, and others buy them for meat.
“You know there’s such a market for them,” Fowler said. “Some people may have them for curiosity but I think probably most of them do end up on a table somewhere, either when they get too old to produce more calves or when they’re no longer profitable for whatever the farmer got them for.”
Though he thinks most of the bison will eventually end up on the dinner table, he said the elk in the prairie have a more positive fate.
“So far we’ve been able to donate our excess elk to release to the wild,” Fowler said. “They’ve gone into the mountains of East Tennessee and Western North Carolina mostly.”
Fowler expects the bison auction to bring between $35,000 and $40,000 that will go back into the management of the elk and bison prairie. Bidders can register the morning of the sale, which begins at 9 a.m., Jan. 31.
