European bison
Bison bonasus
Did you know ... that the European bison’s salivary glands are larger than its brain? European bison consume hard-to-digest foodstuffs (cellulose) and therefore need to produce huge amounts of saliva. A single cow produces up to 100 litres of saliva per day.
Family
Bovidae
Distribution
European bison had been completely hunted out of existence by the beginning of the 20th century and survived only thanks to individual animals in wildlife parks and zoos. The Wildnispark Zurich participates in the European Endangered Species Programme (EEP).
Lifestyle
European bison are herd animals and form groups consisting of up to a dozen animals. They are always led by an older matriarch with a calf. Old bulls, on the other hand, are solitary animals.
Reproduction
The rutting season is between August and October. The gestation period is 38 weeks Calves are generally born between May and July and weigh around 25 kg at birth.
Diet
Adults consume up to 60 kg of food per day, consisting mainly of grasses and herbs but also including young leaves, shoots and bark, supplemented by acorns and beechnuts in autumn. European bison are ruminants
Senses
European bison have extremely well-developed senses of smell and hearing.
The European bison in Langenberg
Since 1969. They are able to be kept with Przewalski’s horses in a spacious enclosure in the western part of Langenberg. The “Fire Cave” and “Bone Forest” discovery worlds above their enclosure inform visitors about the important role played by European bison and tarpans, Eurasian wild horses, in earlier cultures.
