Stephens Creek Empty
A group of 62 bison that had been temporarily held in the Stephens Creek capture facility just outside Gardiner, Montana was released Thursday afternoon and moved south into Yellowstone National Park. The bison were among 88 captured in order to select an experimental group of 25 seronegative bison which was released to a new grazing area on the Gallatin National Forest January 19th. Forty of the bison released back into the park Thursday had been tested for exposure to brucellosis. Of that group, 19 tested positive and 21 tested negative for exposure to brucellosis. Twenty-two bison that had been held at Stephens Creek were not tested. During the selection process, care was taken to ensure young bison calves were not separated from their mothers. However, one bison cow held in Stephens Creek which was found injured was euthanized last week. With Thursday’s release, the Stephens Creek facility is free of bison.
