Here’s what you need to know about buffalo and their history in Indiana

Buffaloes were immortalized in the United States in 2016 when the National Bison Legacy Act made them our national mammal.

An image of a buffalo jumping over a log also appears on the official seal of Indiana.

For thousands of years before Europeans arrived in North America, buffalo were abundant and kept grasslands healthy while providing food, clothing and spiritual connections to the indigenous people living here. The population is estimated to have peaked at around 30 million (some estimates are as high as 60 million).

But habitat loss and overhunting starting in the early 1800s caused their numbers to drop to fewer than 1,000 by the 1880s. That’s when conservation groups and tribal councils began began efforts to restore these iconic animals – work that continues today in northern Indiana and across the United States.