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BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - The Yellowstone National Park bison population has reached an estimated 4,900 animals — hundreds more than last winter and the highest level documented, a park spokeswoman said Wednesday.
The population growth is renewing concerns about how federal and state officials manage the bison, some of which carry the disease brucellosis.
Jake Cummins, executive vice president of the Montana Farm Bureau Federation, said Wednesday the population is three times greater than the park's carrying capacity — what the landscape can successfully sustain — and that it poses a serious risk to a livestock industry fearful that wandering bison will transmit brucellosis to cattle in Montana.
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