An 800-pound bison was video-taped doing a happy dance to welcome the first day of spring.
The bison galloped, bucked, and hopped around, and then rolled in the dirt, looking very joyful.
The video was posted by the North Carolina Zoo to Facebook on March 20. The bison is one of four that stays at the zoo. It’s name is Calf. The other three are named Libby, Lucy, and Nohorn.
North Carolina Zoo Bison Happy Dance
Our bison at the North Carolina Zoo is doing her happy dance for the first day of spring!#HappyDance #bison #notabuffalo #1stdayofspring #nczoo
由 North Carolina Zoo 发布于 2019年3月20日周三
The video clip has since gone viral, garnering 224,000 views, 3,600 reactions, over 2,600 shares, and 243 comments.
The zoo took the time to respond to a Facebook comment that expressed confusion about what the bison was doing.
“She was having a grand time. She is our feisty playful one!” the zoo said.
Another Facebook user, who apparently owns bison, also confirmed the dance.
“Ours were doing that last week. They know it’s spring,” Reena Strickland commented.
Another commenter could empathize with the bison.
“Exactly how I feel when spring comes—enjoy the bison happy dance!” wrote Diane Rodi.
Happy #TongueOutTuesday from our American Bison!#nczoo #bison pic.twitter.com/RoEqbe4y0F
— North Carolina Zoo (@NCZoo) March 19, 2019
Towards the end of the clip, the bison charged towards a group of elk that was staying in the same part of the zoo. The elk scatter upon the bison’s approach. Bison can run as fast as 40 miles per hour, according to the zoo’s website.
Last year, the zoo did a bison version of the internet’s Kiki challenge. In the human version of the challenge, a person will keep their car moving forward while they jump out and dance alongside it, with the driver side door open and the car potentially going out of control. The zoo’s version features bison Lucy walking calmly as a vehicle films her stroll alongside her.
The zoo lists American bison as a “near threatened” animal, which is five designations from “extinct in wild” and one designation away from that of “least concern.” The animal was once found all over the prairies of the American Midwest.
There are now 30,000 American bison in conservation herds and 500,000 bison survive as livestock. At one point in the 1980s, their population was a small as 1,000.
Yellowstone holds the largest population of wild plains bison at around 4,000. Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada has the largest population of wild wood bison at around 10,000, Defenders of Wildlife reported.
Bison and buffalo, although the names are sometimes used interchangeably, are not the same creature. They are indeed both forms of bovidae, along with cows, but the two kinds of true buffalo are found in Africa and Asia and do not have the same appearance as bison. Bison are found in North America and Europe, according to Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute.
Earlier this month, ABC Fox Montana reported that a bison in Yellowstone National Park had been running after snowmobilers and a coach vehicle. Videos posted to Youtube by “Eric P” showed a bison acting territorial and obstinate about who or what it would let pass.
No one was hurt in the encounter but Yellowstone issued a statement, obtained by ABC Fox Montana.
“Animals in Yellowstone are wild and unpredictable, no matter how calm they appear to be. During winter, wildlife endure extremes of cold, wind, and the absence of ready food. Give animals space.”
