3 bison harvested in Indigenous-led ceremonial hunt in Banff National Park

The first ceremonial bison hunt in Banff National Park has been completed under an Indigenous-led pilot project.

Parks Canada and the Indigenous Advisory Circle say three animals were harvested in a free-range hunt last year.

It was the first bison hunt on the land that now makes up Banff since before the park was established nearly 145 years ago.

Parks Canada reintroduced bison to a remote area of the national park in 2017 more than a century after they were hunted to near-extinction.

Indigenous communities and Parks Canada developed the hunting approach together after the herd grew from 16 to more than 130 animals within seven years.

Officials from Blackfoot, Tsuut’ina, Stoney Nakoda and Métis communities in southern Alberta say in a news release that the hunt was meaningful.

“Historically the Blackfoot have always hunted the mountains in Alberta, but our ability to continue hunt our ancestral lands has been limited due to modern day infringements,” said Samuel Crowfoot, a councillor with Siksika Nation east of Calgary.

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“Being able to hunt the same mountains, rivers and forests that our ancestors did allowed us to connect with them in a very special way.”