At Nachusa Grasslands, the bison roundup was in full force

The Nature Conservancy, overseer of the Nachusa Grasslands, organized a roundup Wednesday in order to vaccinate the 150 estimated American buffalo that roam the Franklin Grove prairie lands.

Along with looking out for the health of the native species, properly called bison, and through an agreement with the Intertribal Buffalo Council, the conservancy is donating about 50 bison to tribes throughout the country.

After being filed through a shoot, the animals are recorded, sometimes tagged, and inoculated. The vaccination is required because bison are considered domesticated.

Then they are either released back to the grasslands or separated where they will be transported to the tribal lands.

Doctoral biology student Laurie Spencer of Northern Illinois University is also taking advantage of the roundup by taking samples of her own for a study on the gut microbiota of the American buffalo.

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An American buffalo spends time in a pen at Nachusa Grasslands on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022. Nachusa’s overseer, The Nature Conservancy, has been working to round up the herd for vaccination and conduct an inventory. (Alex T. Paschal - apaschal@shawmedia.com)