Many people come to Custer State Park in the Black Hills for the bison. In the fall the majority of the herd is round up and the bison are kept in a large fenced area. This is done to maintain the health and size of the herd and some animals are sold. We were told that this is the biggest spectacle every year and ten thousands of people come to Custer State Park to see the round up. Today many of the about 250,000 bison that live in other herds across the US and Canada have their origins in the herd from Custer. Some bison still roam free after the round up and we saw mostly solitary bulls or smaller groups.
One morning we came across this big bull and with a photo opportunity like this, it is very easy to get carried away and end up with tons of images on the memory card. After making the usual “safety shots” we really worked this guy with our cameras. The light was good and we waited for some extra gestures a bison bull has in its portfolio. As you can see we were not disappointed… 😊