European wood bison

About European wood bison:

• It is also known as wisent.
• European bison (Bison bonasus) are the largest and heaviest land mammal in Europe.
• There were formerly three subspecies, although only one (Bison bonasus bonasus) remains – the other two are now extinct.
• Habitat: Grassland, deciduous and mixed forests
• The wisent roamed across Europe in large herds at the end of the last ice age.
• It was almost wiped out by 1927 from Europe.
• It serves an important role as an ecosystem engineer, restoring grassland habitat.
• Conservation status:
• IUCN: Near Threatened
• Threats: Rapid environmental change and hunting by humans were the main drivers of the wisent’s extirpation across Europe.
• The scientists found that hunting caused range loss in the north and east of the wisent’s distribution, while land use change was responsible for losses in the west and south.