One in four bison in the world comes from Poland

The country has come to be recognized as a breeding hub of the largest European mammals living in the wild after their rapid growth in number following the end of World War II.

Twenty thousand years ago, the bison inhabited the entire continent, yet its population fell over the centuries, gradually losing their habitat as a result of developing agriculture, deforestation and poaching.

By the end of the 18th century these animals, now a string tourist attraction in Poland, survived only in the Caucasus and the Białowieża Primeval Forest, one of the largest wilderness areas in Europe.

The bison population has survived in Poland due to the protection of royalty, Professor Wanda Olech Piasecka, from the Warsaw University of Life Sciences, told Polish Radio.

“They were royal property. The bison were hunted but also protected [by way of decrees and severe punishments for poaching or overhunting],” Piasecka says.

In 1923, scientists called for the protection of the species at a when the population numbered just 54 pedigree specimens. (aba/pg)