July is National Bison Month—a great time to learn the difference between buffalo and bison. What is commonly called the American buffalo is actually the American bison.
Oh Give Me a Home, Where the Bison Roam
July is National Bison Month—a great time to learn the difference between buffalo and bison. What is commonly called the American buffalo is actually the American bison.
"Bison are part of the family Bovidae, to which cattle and goats belong. They are not in the same family as the Asian and African buffalo. However, because they resembled these Old World animals, early explorers [and artists] called them by that name. Although it is a misnomer, the name buffalo is still used interchangeably with bison. One of the physical differences between the Old World buffalo and the American bison is the large shoulder hump of the bison."
George Catlin's "buffalo bull" is—you guessed it—a bison. In the 1830s, Catlin traveled up the Missouri River into the Dakota Territories to record Plains Indian culture. During these journeys, he painted about 500 canvases that toured the world in his Indian Gallery. Several of Catlin's paintings depict American bison because natives relied on them for food and clothing.
Source: The National Park Service website (http://www.nps.gov/wica/bison.htm) provides the distinction between buffalo and the American bison.
Pictured: George Catlin, 1796–1872, Buffalo Bull, Grazing on the Prairie, 1832–33, oil on fabric: canvas mounted on aluminum, 24 x 29 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.