The North American bison is the largest terrestrial animal in the continent.  To most, they are called buffalo, but to historians, they are known as bison.  They were originally from Eurasia, but they crossed the land bridge to Alaska in prehistoric times.  Until the 19th century, as many as 60 million bison lived on the Great Plains, extending from Canada to Mexico.  These massive creatures were hunted by people of many cities and tribes, including people from Acoma and by the Apaches Indians.  Between 1830 and 1889, the population dropped to under 1,000.  This was due to extensive hunting by the white man.  Now, the population is up to 30,000 bison, though they all live in reserves.