Celebrating Bison

Learn Why Bison Are So Important to Denver Zoo and Colorado

In the mid-1800s there were an estimated 30 to 60 million bison roaming North America. By the end of the century, right around the time Denver Zoo was founded, there were fewer than 1,000.

More than 100 years later, Denver Zoo and our partners are helping to restore bison populations through our field conservation efforts in Colorado and New Mexico. Bison are one of the cultural icons of the West and a hold a special place in Denver Zoo’s history as one of the animals in our original collection.

We recently celebrated National Bison Day here at Denver Zoo to educate our visitors about what these animals mean to Colorado and you.