Yellowstone bison given to tribes to help reduce slaughters

By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press
US officials are transferring 33 disease-free bison from Yellowstone National Park to an American Indian reservation in Montana as part of efforts to reduce the slaughter of bison that migrate from the park.

The shipment included bison and descendants trapped by park administrators under an agreement with the state of Montana that's intended to prevent the spread of the disease brucellosis.

The bison were tested repeatedly during a Yellowstone-area quarantine run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to make sure they were disease-free.

Yellowstone has captured thousands of bison and sent them to slaughter for disease control over the past few decades.