Grand Canyon National Park

Bison enter a corral at Grand Canyon National Park during the park's first capture effort in 2019.

The Arizona Game and Fish Commission and the National Park Service has entered into an agreement to reduce the number of bison on the Grand Canyon National Park’s North Rim.

With concerns that the bison population is growing unsustainably, the commission and the National Park Service have agreed to use several methods such as relocation and lethal removal. 

The bison herd was initially about 100 strong when they were first brought to the area in the early 1900s. Biologists predict it will grow to nearly 800 in the next three years and up to 1,500 by 2030. 

The groups began a pilot program of live captures and relocation in 2019. Relocation will continue, and lethal removal is likely to be used in the fall of 2021. The number of bison to be removed will be determined annually in the National Park Service's operating plan.

Learn more about Grand Canyon bison management at: nps.gov/grca/learn/nature/bison.htm.