WASHINGTON (TV Delmarva) — America’s designated national mammal is being honored with a special tribute as the country prepares to mark its 250th anniversary.
A trio of bronze bison sculptures has been permanently installed outside Washington’s Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. The oversized statues, which exceed the dimensions of actual bison, were unveiled to the public on Friday in the nation’s capital.
The bison received its designation as America’s official mammal through legislation signed into law by former President Obama in 2016. These massive creatures once numbered in the millions across the Great Plains before hunting nearly wiped them out during the 19th century.
“It’s a wonderful story of conservation working, it’s a story of people seeing a need and getting behind that to conserve an animal that is specific to North America,” said Gary Staab, a paleoartist who made the statues.
Working from his studio in Kearney, Missouri, Staab creates animal sculptures and historical replicas for museums worldwide. For this project, he crafted the life-sized figures using foam and clay before sending them to a Colorado foundry where they were cast in bronze and put together. The installation features three figures representing a bull, cow, and calf.
According to Staab, the entire project took approximately four months from start to finish — a timeline he described as “lighting fast” considering the massive scale of the work.
“They really represent a really unbelievably beautiful and unique thing about North America,” Staab said.
