New bison exhibit at Wanuskewin coincides with birth of baby bison at park

A new exhibit at Wanuskewin Heritage Park near Saskatoon is coinciding with a special time of year for the bison that live there.

Ancient Pathways, A Bison Biography is a travelling exhibit that aims to honour the history and importance of the bison. Olivia Kristoff, curator of the exhibit, said it creates a really interesting way to see the park.

"Because you're going in with an understanding of the history of the bison a little bit more and how important they were to the land, and then you get to go out on the trails and actually see the bison," she said.

People can check the exhibit out until Aug. 25.

At the same time, park staff are eagerly awaiting the birth of new baby bison this spring.

"All of our staff is kind of on pins and needles waiting to see when the first bison will arrive. This is always a really exciting time of the year," Andrew McDonald, director of marketing and communications at Wanuskewin, said.

The show is well-known in the United States, according to Kristoff.

"It kind of goes through the history of the bison, the importance that they are to the land, how the introduction of colonialism was their downfall," she said.

"And then how they came back, and how the efforts to have them back on the land is so important. Basically from the soil up, they play a role. There are certain species that wouldn't be on the land without the bison."

Currently, there are 18 head of bison at Wanuskewin, according to McDonald. But that number could grow any day now.