On Friday, May 8, 2026, the Bureau of Land Management released their final decision to revoke access to all seven of American Prairie’s bison grazing allotments on public land. The federal agency, under Doug Bergum, does not see or define AP's bison as “production-oriented livestock” under the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934.

American Prairie is a conservation non-profit that has identified the northern grasslands of Montana as the only place left in the US to restore an entire prairie ecosystem. Their goal is create a 3.2 million acre preserve, a fully functioning ecosystem, by linking together private land and adjacent public land.

Already navigating a changing climate and historic drought, some neighboring ranchers see American Prairie’s mission “to save the prairie” as a slight against their own land stewardship practices that go back five generations. They also believe American Prairie, with their deep pockets and buying power, raise land prices and ultimately are an existential threat to local, family-owned ranches that produce food.

“I don’t think it’s about the bison,” explained Ryan Busse, a Democrat running in a primary in Montana’s First District.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/04/us/politics/trump-buffalos-montana.html

Story written by Jack Healy and photo edit by Jen Mosbrucker