bison

There are cave paintings in France depicting bison, other animals and humans from this time, called the Upper Paleolithic Era.

The desire for cattle-supporting land played an integral role in the systematic decimation of bison populations, as well.

For thousands of years, Native Americans relied on bison for physical and cultural survival.

It is no coincidence that the rise of an extensive and powerful American beef industry coincided with the near-elimination of bison across the United States.

Bison populations were already in steep decline by the mid-1800s, but after the Civil War, as industrialization transformed transportation, communication and mass production, the U.S.