WATCH: Huge beast not seen since the Ice Age returns
A 500-kilogram beast of an animal that has not been seen in Britain since the Ice Age has made a ‘return’ to the countryside.
There are about four of these beasts grazing in the wild now. On Saturday, it was reported that an Irish female gave birth to a calf in September.
This was the first wild bison to be born in Britain in around 6 000 years.On 9 September, the birth of the baby bison came as a surprise to many.
Known as Europe’s largest animal, the mammals were hunted to extinction. In the areas of West Blean and Thornden Woods, near Canterbury in Kent, the wild bison are grazing.
The bison were released in July According to The Guardian, three of these gentle giants became the first wild bison to roam Britain in thousands of years. The European bison is the content’s largest animal. A bull can weigh up to one tonne.
They were extinct in the wild a century ago. The animal’s population is slowly recovering due to reintroduction projects across the continent.
The six-foot animals were introduced as part of the Wilder Bean Project. The project is a joint initiative between Kent Wildlife and Wildwood Trusts.
Their aim is for the ‘gentle’ beasts to revitalise the woodland through grazing, felling trees and eating bark.
Thirty-two-year-old bison ranger Tom Gibbs said it is difficult to detect pregnancy in a bison.
According to Gibbs, the animals naturally conceal it to prevent being hunted by predators. “In the weeks leading up to the birth, while the other two would either be eating, digesting or just taking in their surroundings, she would always be eating.
We thought, ‘OK, she loves her food’, but she was eating for two!” said Gibbs about the mother. Wild bison spend most of their time foraging in the woods.
They eat about 25kgs of birch, sweet chestnut, brambles, oak and bracken. According to the Mirror, Kent is the only place wild bison can be seen for now.
