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Part of Wood Bison Recovery Plan engagement

Wood bison recovery plan engagement survey

We are seeking feedback on the draft wood bison recovery plan.

Explore pages in:
Wood Bison Recovery Plan engagement
  • Wood bison recovery plan engagement survey

The draft recovery plan has been prepared in response to wood bison being listed as threatened under the Wildlife Act in some areas of Alberta in 2021.

Your feedback on the draft plan will help guide disease management actions for Alberta’s wood bison. The plan is focused on addressing issues such as disease transmission and conflict between humans and bison, aiming to ensure the long-term survival of Alberta’s disease-free wood bison populations. The draft plan was developed with input from Indigenous communities, organizations, and stakeholders local to wood bison ranges in Northern Alberta.

The survey is divided into 7 sections:

  • Wood bison recovery plan
  • Threats and limiting factors
  • Recovery goals and objectives
  • Habitat and land use recommendations
  • Recovery strategies and actions
  • Conclusion
  • Tell us about yourself

Each section is designed to take approximately 5 to 10 minutes to complete. All questions are optional.

The survey takes up to 60 minutes to complete and closes April 9, 2026.

Survey

Do not submit responses that include personal information about other people.

  • Wood Bison Recovery Plan
  • Threats and potential limiting factors
  • Recovery goals and objectives
  • Habitat and land use recommendations
  • Recovery strategies and actions
  • Conclusion
  • Tell us about yourself
  • Complete

Wood Bison Recovery Plan

Before you get started, here are some things we’d like you to know.

  • Bovine brucellosis and tuberculosis were introduced to wood bison in Wood Buffalo National Park in the 1920s. These diseases pose a significant threat to Alberta’s wood bison populations outside of the park, as well as Alberta’s domestic livestock.
  • Wood bison have been listed as Threatened under the Federal Species at Risk Act since 2003.
  • Alberta launched a comprehensive disease management program in 2010, focusing on testing, surveillance, and monitoring. This program is still active.
  • There are five wild populations of wood bison managed whole, or in part by Alberta: Etthithun, Hay-Zama, Ronald Lake, Wabasca and Wentzel. The Ronald Lake and Wabasca populations are naturally occurring. The Etthithun and Hay-Zama populations resulted from conservation actions to reintroduce wood bison into these areas.
  • Of these five populations, only the Wentzel population is confirmed to be diseased.
  • Wood bison have been listed as threatened in specific Wildlife Management Units (WMUs) in Northern Alberta under the Wildlife Act since 2021.
  • This change aimed to protect disease-free populations and prompted the need for a provincial recovery plan.
  • The draft recovery plan focuses on reducing the risk of transmission of bovine brucellosis and tuberculosis to wood bison populations while maintaining measures to prevent transmission to domestic livestock.
  • Alberta’s disease-free wood bison populations (Etthithun, Hay-Zama, Ronald Lake, Wabasca) are the focus of this recovery plan. These populations are important to overall conservation of wood bison.

Thank you for taking the time to provide your input. Public review of recovery plans is required by the Wildlife Act. Your feedback from will be carefully considered before this plan is finalized.

Have you reviewed the draft wood bison recovery plan?

Threats and potential limiting factors

Threats to Alberta’s wood bison and potential limiting factors of their recovery are outlined in sections 2.4 and 2.5 of the draft recovery plan.

Do you feel like there is anything missing from this section?

Recovery goals and objectives

Recovery goals and objectives for Alberta’s wood bison are outlined in section 3.0 of the draft recovery plan. Each wood bison population in Alberta exists within a distinct conservation and socio-cultural setting. Specific recovery objectives have been established for each population.

The long-term goals for wood bison recovery in Alberta are:

  • achieve self-sustaining populations
  • disease-free populations that provide ecological benefits
  • support food security for Indigenous communities and organizations
  • harvest opportunities for Albertans

The combined objective for the Hay-Zama and Etthithun populations is to maintain a self-sustaining population of at least 1,000 individuals (Section 3.1). Additionally, the harvest of wood bison from these populations will be managed to:

  • maintain a self-sustaining population;
  • minimize the risk of undesirable range expansion that increases the risk of disease exposure;
  • reduce human-bison conflict;
  • contribute to the food security of Indigenous communities;
  • provide hunting opportunities for Albertans; and
  • provide economic benefits to local and Indigenous communities.

The objective for the Wabasca population is to achieve a stable and self-sustaining population, while effectively containing the risk of brucellosis and tuberculosis from neighboring diseased populations – or eliminating both disease entirely (Section 3.2). As the population moves toward self-sufficiency, management efforts will:

  • minimize the risk of disease exposure;
  • minimize the risk of undesirable range expansion that increases the risk of human-bison conflict;
  • contribute to food security for Indigenous Communities; and
  • provide opportunities for Alberta resident harvest and regional tourism.
The objective for the Ronald Lake population is to maintain a stable or increasing population that is of sufficient size to be self-sustaining and able to contribute to cultural connections, traditional practices, and sustainable use for future generations (Section 3.3). The population will be managed for health, with measures in place to prevent interaction with diseased bison in WBNP, maintain habitat within its current range, and provide opportunities to expand its distribution.
The objective for the Wentzel population is to continue managing the risk and spread of brucellosis and tuberculosis by controlling its distribution and size through unregulated harvest (Section 3.4).

Habitat and land use recommendations

The habitat requirements needed to support wood bison recovery in Alberta includes land-use recommendations. These are outlined in Section 4.0 on the draft plan.

Recovery strategies and actions

Section 5.0 of the draft recovery plan outlines proposed strategies and actions for Alberta’s wood bison.

In the questions below, share any concerns or additional considerations you have regarding these proposed strategies and actions.

Conclusion

Tell us about yourself

Which of the following best describes your interest in Alberta wood bison? (Check all that apply)
How was your experience sharing your input today?
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