The Nature Conservancy in Oklahoma - Tallgrass Prairie Bison Facts

Bison is the correct term for the mammals on the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve. According to scientists, true buffalo are confined to Africa and Southeast Asia.
Before the settlements of modern civilization, around 30 million bison roamed across North America. By 1890, fewer than 600 plains bison were alive.
Bison and cattle are cousins (that is, they are in the same genus, Bos).
Bison are the largest native animals on the North American continent.
Full-grown bison bulls stand about 6.5 feet at the shoulder and can weigh up to 2,000 pounds.
Adult bison consume more than 30 pounds of grass (air-dry weight) in a day.
Bison can jump 6 feet vertically. Because they reportedly can jump more than 7 feet horizontally, "bisonguards" on the Preserve are 14 feet wide. (This is double the standard width of a cattleguard.)
Bison can run speeds up to 35 miles per hour.
Bison are powerful swimmers, navigating with all but hump, muzzle, and top of the head submerged.
Both sexes have horns; the cow's are smaller. A bull bison can be identified from a cow by wider, thicker horns; a wider skull; and a generally more massive structure.
The gestation period for bison is 9.5 months.
Bison calves are generally born in the spring and weigh 30-40 pounds.
The bison was named the state mammal of Oklahoma by the legislature in 1972.