Prairie Wanderings: Maxwell Refuge tours worth taking
By PAUL G. JANTZEN
Contributing writer
On this evening of the last day of summer, we are surrounded by a herd of about 200 buffalo, an intermingling of grunting cows and calves and a few bulls nearly twice the size of the cows. Our tour guide, Maryl Williams, notes that the cow and calf pairs recognize each other's grunts, even in a large herd.
We are on the second of two trams furnished by the Friends of Maxwell who provide tours of the Maxwell Wildlife Refuge, six miles north of Canton. These buffalo really belong here on the rounded prairie hills in the headwaters of Gypsum Creek.
Back in 1943, the sons of McPherson businessman Henry Irving Maxwell began purchasing virgin prairie land for a wildlife refuge. In 1944, they deeded 2,560 acres to the forerunner of the current Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. In 1953, seven cows and three bulls were obtained from Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma to form the nucleus of this 200-head herd. To avoid exceeding the range's carrying capacity, each November the numbers in excess of 200 are sold at auction to offset the number of calves born in spring. Buyers aim to introduce genetic diversity to their herds or slaughter the animals for low-fat, low-cholesterol meat.
Elk were also introduced in 1951; but they are not easily seen until the cooler days of late fall when they can be seen at early morning or late evening. Their numbers here average about 50.
As our pickup-drawn trams headed toward the herd, we noted the fall colors of the big bluestem, Indian grass, sumac, dogwood, blue sage, and several species of goldenrods. One, the showy wand goldenrod, I had not seen before. Its yellow blossoms cling close to the upright stalk like the blue flowers of blazing star.
We passed several wallows, depressions in the prairie surface where the buffalo have rolled to rid their skin of the long hair of winter and to control pesky insects and parasites. Maryl says that these wallows are easily seen from above even when flying over the prairie.
Along the two-track road, I see numerous western ragweeds due to the frequent soil disturbance by passing vehicles like our tram.
As we approach the herd, Owen Meier flips protein pellets near the trail to encourage the buffalo (really American bison) to remain close to the trams for our easy observation. These pellets, a mixture of grains and alfalfa, are used to supplement the grass diet of bison and elk during winter months. Big bluestem transfers nutrients from its leaves and stems into its roots for the winter.
Maryl mentions that to control weeds and red cedars, the entire grass cover of the refuge is burned off in mid-April every three years. If only half the refuge is burned, the bison remain in the burned area as if anticipating the greening of spring.
After a gestation period of about nine and one-half months, the brownish-orange to yellowish calves are born in April or May (rarely in June). Maryl estimates from their color and size that two of the calves were born late this year. Also among us are darker yearlings. The cows can breed in two or three years but the bulls attain breeding size only after four or five years, after "proving themselves" to the older bulls. Maryl points out that the horns of the bulls point straight up while the female's horns are curved inward.
I asked Maryl what happens to the carcass of a bison that dies here on the refuge. She says that when a bison dies of old age or a lightning strike, they let nature take its course through scavenging and decay. If the carcass is close to the tram trail, they move it out of sight over the hill.
Here among living, moving bison, one thinks back to the days when there were thousands of these magnificent creatures perhaps milling over these very hills, grazing on bluestem, Indian, and switch grasses, and rolling clumsily in the wallows. And when one remembers that from 60 million head their numbers were reduced to less than 1,000, we are fortunate to experience this growing remnant and to move among them.
For a safe, close-up experience with bison, tours are offered on a tram with a protective rail. A guided tour with a knowledgeable guide is an excellent family or other group experience. Call (620) 628-4455 for additional information about the refuge, the fishing/boating lake, bird watching, a nature trail, wildflower walks, and special seasonal events.
