Early in the 19th century, about 60 million bison lived on the Great Plains in North America. They were central to the existence of the Plains people. Then from 1830 to 1889 they neared extinction, with less than 1,000 still roaming. Today, they are a protected animal and there are well over 200,000 living in protected areas and ranches.

· I live in North America, however, I have some close relatives in Europe.
· I live in plains regions. I am able to survive cold winters.
· I roam out in the open on the Great Plains of North America, mostly in protected areas and private ranches.
· I have a massive head, a hump over my front shoulders and sharply pointed horns.
· I have a thick coat of dark brown and black hair.
· I am about 6.5 feet (2 meters) tall and about 9-12 feet (2.7-3.7 meters) long.
· I'm quite heavy. I can weigh 1800-2400 pounds (850-1100 kg).
· I eat lots leaves and lots of grass.
· I have help getting protection now, because I was near extinction. But I do have horns and I usually hang out in a group with my friends.
· I first came to North American in prehistoric times when I crossed the Bering Strait land bridge from Eurasia.


译文

野牛——地图上涂绿色的地方是我的家

有趣的常识:

早在十九世纪,约六千万野牛生活在北美大草原上。它们曾是草原人民的生活中心。然而从1830年到1889年,它们濒临灭绝,只有1000只野牛尚存。今天,它们是保护动物,并且超过20万只野牛很好地生活在保护区和农场。

· 我生活在北美,然而,我有一些近亲在欧洲。
· 我生活在草原地区,我能在寒冷的冬天生存。
· 我在北美大草原上露天闲逛,大部分是在保护区中和私人牧场。
· 我有一个大大的头,前肩上面有个隆起和一个尖锐突出的角。
· 我有着黑棕色的厚粗外衣和黑色的头发。
· 我大约6.5英尺(2米)高,约9-12英尺(2.7-3.7米)长。
· 我非常重,我能重达1800-2400磅(850-1100千克)。
· 我吃大量的树叶和草。
· 现在我受到了保护,因为我正濒临灭绝。但是我有角,我通常和朋友结伴出行。
· 在史前时期,我从欧亚大陆穿越白令海峡、走过陆地、桥第一次来到了北美。