Big game

Bison (Bison bonasus)

The aurochs, also called the European bison, is a large mammal from the class of even-toed ungulates, Male Mass: 500 – 1200 kg and more Height of the withers: 170 – 200 cm Body length: about 2.5 – 3 m Female Mass: 350 – 500 kg Height of the withers: 160 – 190 cm The aurochs disappeared en masse from Western Europe by the end of the 11th century except in the Ardennes, where they survived until the 14th century. The last aurochs in Moldova was killed in 1762, and in 1790 in Transylvania. The zuber was legally owned by the Polish kings, the Lithuanian princes and the Russian tsars. King Zygmunt II August introduced the death penalty for the killing of bison in the mid-16th century. The last wild aurochs in Poland was killed in 1919, and the last wild aurochs in the world was killed in the Caucasus by poachers in 1927. By this year, fewer than 50 individuals remained, all of them in zoos. The bison were released into the wild in 1951 and the operation was a success. They live in reserves near Bialowieza Forest in Poland and Belarus. Herds are found in Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and Kyrgyzstan. Zoos in 30 countries also hold several individuals. In 2000, there were 3,000 individuals of the Zuber species, all descended from 12 individuals. Due to their limited genetic pool, they are considered very vulnerable to diseases such as foot and mouth. Attempts have been made to establish small populations of bison in Bulgaria, but not all have been successful. In Bulgaria, bison are bred only in the "Voden" hunting farm in Razgradsko. By 1990, their number was 160, but it gradually decreased. According to data from 2017, there are 30 aurochs on the "Voden" farm in Bulgaria. In the Eastern Rhodopes, in the "Studen Kladenets" game breeding area, there are also 7 bison, whose settlement began in October 2013.