My wife thinks that I am a contrarian for not calling the American Buffalo by the new name Bison. I have told her that I never heard of Bison Bill, a Bison Soldier, Bison, New York, a Bison nickel and I am still waiting for that ever popular song with the line "where the Bison roam." To show her how flexible I am, I have agreed to refer to the American Buffalo as Bison when the U.S. mints begin to issue Bison Nickels.
I hope you enjoy these and thanks for looking.
Great shots of buffalo!
(BTW - Bison (c.1350–1400) is not new.)
Wonderful! Love the head shots. Those eyes! All are great!
47greyfox
Loc: on the edge of the Colorado front range
Iconic…. well done! Thank you….
That unfortunate animal is still called a buffalo because of the ignorance of the early settlers.
Great pictures, though.
diclam
Loc: Red Lake Falls, MN
Great photos! They look like Buffalo to me, but I have been wrong before (once or twice)!
Nice shots! Since I knew them as a kid as Buffalo and have had a hard time remembering to call them bison, I have decided their first name is Buffalo and the last name Bison! So to me they are Mr or Miss Buffalo Bison!!!
Are they offended by the term "buffalo"?
You're on the right track. Great photos.
Dan Thornton wrote:
My wife thinks that I am a contrarian for not calling the American Buffalo by the new name Bison. I have told her that I never heard of Bison Bill, a Bison Soldier, Bison, New York, a Bison nickel and I am still waiting for that ever popular song with the line "where the Bison roam." To show her how flexible I am, I have agreed to refer to the American Buffalo as Bison when the U.S. mints begin to issue Bison Nickels.
I hope you enjoy these and thanks for looking.
Well Dan, your wife is right! Not sure why people continue to misname certain things. Here is what the Smithsonian says:
Are bison and buffalo the same?
Though the terms are often used interchangeably, buffalo and bison are distinct animals. Old World “true” buffalo (Cape buffalo and water buffalo) are native to Africa and Asia. Bison are found in North America and Europe.
Both bison and buffalo are in the bovidae family, but the two are not closely related.
How did the names get so mixed up? Historians believe that early European explorers are to blame, though the details are a bit murky. According to the National Park Service, it’s possible it stemmed from the French word boeuf, meaning beef. Others posit that bison hides resembled buff coats commonly worn by military men at the time, inspiring the name. Whatever the case, the misnomer stuck.
P.S. Your photos of the bison are wonderful!
The re-training continues.
In another generation or two, no one will call them buffalo anymore.
All the documentation for Buffalo Bill will have to be rewritten also.
How many people call wasps hornets and vice-versa? That's next? We'll have to re-train them also.
Must be correct.
To me, they will always be buffalo. Excellent captures.
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