Who I am: I am a display case inside the visitor park
Audience: Visitors at Yellowstone National Park
Setting: Yellowstone National Park Visitor center
Purpose: To show the ecological importance of Bison in ecosystems
Video Script
Yellowstone National Park is the only place in the United States where bison have lived continuously since prehistoric times. The bison at Yellowstone are extraordinary because they are the nation’s largest bison population. Unlike most other herds, this population is divided into two breeding herds, northern and central, together there is roughly 4600 individuals that are allowed to roam almost freely over the landscape of the Park and a few areas near Montana. They also exhibit wild behavior like their ancient ancestors; known as the Steppe Bison.
The bison converge during the breeding season to compete for mates, as well as migration that result in the use of new habitat areas. These behaviors have enabled the successful restoration of a population that was on the brink of extinction just over a century ago. However, some Yellowstone bison are infected with brucellosis, a livestock disease that can be transmitted to wild bison and elk as well as cattle through contact with infected fetal tissue. To prevent conflicts with ranching …show more content…
At an experimental site at the Konza Prairie in Kansas, scientists have studied the effects of naturally decomposing bison carcasses on the surrounding ecosystem. Initially, large amounts of nitrogen rich fluids are released that are toxic to the plants under the carcass. Within three years, however, the original carcass site is two to three times as nutrient rich as nearby sites and is dominated by early successional species (Knapp et al. 1999, Towne 2000). The remains of scavenged carcasses would have similar effects. Bison carcasses therefore create a unique local disturbance event that ultimately results in increased
Audience: Visitors at Yellowstone National Park
Setting: Yellowstone National Park Visitor center
Purpose: To show the ecological importance of Bison in ecosystems
Video Script
Yellowstone National Park is the only place in the United States where bison have lived continuously since prehistoric times. The bison at Yellowstone are extraordinary because they are the nation’s largest bison population. Unlike most other herds, this population is divided into two breeding herds, northern and central, together there is roughly 4600 individuals that are allowed to roam almost freely over the landscape of the Park and a few areas near Montana. They also exhibit wild behavior like their ancient ancestors; known as the Steppe Bison.
The bison converge during the breeding season to compete for mates, as well as migration that result in the use of new habitat areas. These behaviors have enabled the successful restoration of a population that was on the brink of extinction just over a century ago. However, some Yellowstone bison are infected with brucellosis, a livestock disease that can be transmitted to wild bison and elk as well as cattle through contact with infected fetal tissue. To prevent conflicts with ranching …show more content…
At an experimental site at the Konza Prairie in Kansas, scientists have studied the effects of naturally decomposing bison carcasses on the surrounding ecosystem. Initially, large amounts of nitrogen rich fluids are released that are toxic to the plants under the carcass. Within three years, however, the original carcass site is two to three times as nutrient rich as nearby sites and is dominated by early successional species (Knapp et al. 1999, Towne 2000). The remains of scavenged carcasses would have similar effects. Bison carcasses therefore create a unique local disturbance event that ultimately results in increased