Where the Buffalo Roam

The wonderful thing about Mother's Day is that one's family feels obligated to do whatever crazy activity the mother wants to do.  At least that's the way I see it, so yesterday, I buffaloed my family into going along for a picnic at Fermilab.

Fermilab, or Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, is a large facility in Batavia, Illinois dedicated to particle physics research.  It is best known for its Tevatron, a four-mile particle accelerator.  Fermilab is a campus of 6,800 acres of former prairie and farmland.  The campus is open to visitors for biking, dog walking, a stroll through the prairie, and, of course, science education.

The real draw for me, however, is the small herd of North American bison (aka American buffalo).  Bison have lived at Fermilab since 1969 when they were brought to the site by Robert Wilson, the laboratory's first director, as a way to recognize and maintain the connection to the prairie.

Luckily on Sunday, the bison were down at one end of their large grazing area, near the double fence so, after a trek along the pasture from the security building, we were able to get a close-up look at them.  They are in the process of shedding their winter coats, so they looked a bit ragged, but still awe-inspiring.

Bison stand 5-6.5 feet tall (1.5-2 meters) and can weigh from 930-2,200 pounds (422-998 kilograms).  While the husband thought they looked quite docile, they can and will attack, and can run almost 40 miles (65 km) an hour! According to the National Park Service, every year bison injure visitors to Yellowstone Park who get too close to the herd.  I wouldn't want to get too close, but I enjoyed getting just close enough to these majestic creatures that once roamed the American prairies and the American west.

Protected by a double row of fencing. The one you see here, closest to the bison, is electrified.