City and County of Denver Transfers Bison to Tribal Nations

City and County of Denver Transfers  Bison to Tribal Nations

Published on March 06, 2026

Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR) successfully transferred 34 American Bison to the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, Buffalo First, Navajo Nation and Tall Bull Memorial Council to reintroduce wild bison, support conservation efforts, and acknowledge tribal sovereignty and cultural continuity among Native communities. Ten American Bison were presented this morning to the Northern Cheyenne Tribe in Oklahoma, and 12 bison will be transferred to the Buffalo First (Cheyenne River Sioux). Eleven animals were transferred to the Navajo Nation. One bison will be given to the Tall Bull Memorial Council in Colorado.

DPR previously auctioned off young bison from Genesee Park and Daniels Park during an annual auction. This auction kept the herd at a healthy population size and promoted genetic diversity within the managed bison population but did not meet other conservation goals. With support of Denver City Council and city leadership, DPR now gives excess bison to tribes and tribal non-profits across the country that will accept the bison to build and enhance conservation herds on tribal lands.

"Our annual bison transfer is more than a program - it's a promise to begin restoring what was never ours alone," said Denver Mayor Mike Johnston. "By returning these bison, we are giving back a living piece of the land to the communities who have stewarded it for generations. The City of Denver is committed to walking forward as true partners with the American Indian community, honoring their leadership, culture and connection to this land. This moment is sacred and an opportunity to mend a relationship strained by our city's past and to rebuild it with respect and shared purpose."

In 2021, Denver City Council approved an ordinance for the donation of American Bison from the City and County of Denver to American Indian Tribes and non-profit organizations that led to the first official bison transfer to the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes and the Tall Bull Memorial Council in April 2021. The tribes receiving bison this year represent two of the three named tribes in the Land Acknowledgement created by City Council and later adopted by DPR.

"It's important for us to be here today to bless our people with some buffalo for the future generations," said Donovan Taylor, Northern Cheyenne Tribe.

"It's an honor to be witness to what's going on today. Being able to work with the bison and being able to bring together different tribal nations and focus our efforts to the same common goal, which is to restore these bison, bring them to our traditional ways of life, and bring them home," said Lewis Tall Bull, Tall Bull Memorial Council.

"For the Navajo Nation, it's both spiritual and cultural significance to us from the values that we place on the animals. These animals will bring new genetics to our herds but there is that cultural tie which brings us the spiritual value to our work," said Sam Diswood , Navajo Nation.

DPR maintains two conservation bison herds in the Denver Mountain Parks system at Genesee Park and Daniels Park. The herds are descendants from the last wild bison in North America and were originally established at Denver's City Park by the Denver Zoo and the City of Denver. The herd was moved to Genesee Park in 1914 and expanded to Daniels Park in 1938. DPR continues to work closely with the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance to achieve conservation goals.

"Since 2018, a total of 174 bison have been provided to American Indian tribes and native non-profits to help establish, support and sustain Native American conservation herds across the country," said DPR Executive Director Jolon Clark. "A lot of work goes into the bison conservation program and we are grateful for the expertise and commitment of all our partners".

Denver Mountain Parks began caring for the first managed bison herd in Colorado to conserve the species and prevent extinction. Herds that numbered more than 30 million when the first Europeans set foot on the American continent were nearly wiped out by the 1880s. At the turn of the 20th century, fewer than 1,000 bison remained in existence. Today it is estimated that there are 31,000 free-range wild bison in North America.

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