An adult wood buffalo.

The buffalo, a uniquely American animal and a symbol of the plains, almost did not survive the nineteenth century. As the American West was cleared for farming, new towns, and the railway system, hunters killed millions of these animals, which once ranged throughout the West. In the entire United States, only a single herd survived the slaughter. Every buffalo living in this country today is descended from this herd. The buffalo in Canada fared better. Wood buffalo (Bison bison athabascae) are close relatives of the United States' plains buffalo (Bison bison), but larger and with darker coats. A significant number of Canadian wood buffalo survived, and the descendants of the herd remain wild, thanks to an 1893 law prohibiting buffalo hunting in Canada.

So when wildlife filmmakers Jeff and Sue Turner wanted to make a documentary about wild buffalo, they headed to Canada's Northwest Territory. There, in Wood Buffalo National Park, lives the only bison herd in the world that has always been wild. The Turners' film, WOLVES AND BUFFALO: THE LAST FRONTIER, seen on NATURE, takes the viewer into a world where these two animals -- natural enemies since the beginning of time -- live out their lives as they have done for centuries, undisturbed by humans.

To document the lives of these animals, Jeff Turner moved into the wilderness of the park for two years, living in tents. His wife and children joined him during the warmer months. Since no vehicles are allowed within the boundaries of the park, the filmmakers made their way from site to site on skis or snowshoes, lugging their equipment on their backs. The task was arduous, but the Turners felt that the opportunity to film the wildlife in this historic preserve was too great to pass up.

Safe from humans, wolves and buffalo at Wood Buffalo National Park are left to continue their ancient rivalry.

Wolves hunt in packs.

Much of the time, the two species coexist fairly peacefully. While buffalo mothers must keep close watch on their calves, grazing bison usually ignore nearby wolves, as it takes several wolves to bring down an adult buffalo. Even then, a bison can use its sharp horns to ward off predators.

Based on size alone, the wolf is an unlikely buffalo killer -- by itself, a 130-pound wolf is no match for a bison that weighs a ton. But wolves are pack animals that hunt in teams, banding together to bring down their prey. A pack of 10 to 15 wolves can launch a fatal attack on a massive buffalo. The long hunting scene at the end of the NATURE program shows how several wolves can successfully hunt a lone, vulnerable bison: rather than remaining to protect it, the rest of the buffalo herd thunders away. Alone, a single bison is vulnerable to attack; although it is larger than the wolves, it is no match for them when they hunt as a group.

A single buffalo can feed several wolves for days, so wolves keep an eye out for vulnerable prey. Since their best targets are smaller, weaker animals, the wolves actually perform an important evolutionary service for the buffalo: by eliminating the herd's weakest members, the wolves help create a stronger breed.

Wood Buffalo National Park in northern Canada was established in 1922 in an attempt to preserve the remaining 1500 wood bison that survived the hunting rampage of the late 19th century. Along with wolves and buffalo, the park is a haven for voles, muskrats, waterfowl like Golden Eyes, and endangered animals like the whooping crane. To preserve its wild environment, the park prohibits vehicles: visitors must venture through the 10,500 square mile park on foot. The pristine wilderness you see on NATURE actually has a history of wildlife-management issues. Between 1925 and 1928, the Canadian government introduced some 6,600 plains buffalo to the park. The influx of new bison meant genetic mixing between the new additions and the original wood buffalo, and what soon resulted was a hybrid herd of plains and wood bison.

By 1940, the wood buffalo seemed to have become extinct through interbreeding. However, in 1957, 200 genetically distinct wood bison were found in a remote corner of the park. To preserve the species, the government spent 22 years relocating some of these wood buffalo to other Canadian parks, like the Mackenzie Bison Sanctuary, Elk Island, and the Nahanni National Park.

Although they helped strengthen the species, the immigrant plains bison introduced by the Canadian government brought with them diseases like tuberculosis, brucellosis, and anthrax. The resident buffalo herd was soon infected. Fearing the diseases would spread to their livestock, cattle ranchers living around the park in the 1920s called for the herd to be exterminated and replaced with healthy bison. This debate, now over 50 years old, still continues.

Today, a bison research team, sponsored by the Canadian government, is investigating the extent of the infections and making recommendations on how to best manage the herd. The team plans to establish a cattle-free buffer zone around the park's perimeter, limiting interactions between bison and cattle and keeping the livestock disease-free. While this may enclose the bison herd, limiting its wildness, it will help solve ecological issues and preserve the herd for posterity.

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