A Day Photographing the Modoc Yellowstone Bison
When I first started this project for the Kimmell Foundation I knew I would be driving around shooting bison but I had no idea how many places in Oklahoma. Today was a nice three hour drive from Oklahoma City to where the Modoc bison were grazing - Miami, OK… No that’s not Miami as the Miami you know in Florida. This is the Miami located in far Northeast Oklahoma within a few miles of the Missouri - Oklahoma border.
Backing up.. On Christmas Eve I read an article about Yellowstone Bison and how they cull the herd and where they go. I had no idea that on an annual basis Yellowstone gifts some of the bison they are needing to get rid of to organizations, tribes, etc. Well… the week of Christmas there were two lucky groups that received some of the Yellowstone Bison and the Modoc Nation outside Miami, OK were lucky enough to get 30 of them with 17 going to a group up in Washington state. What are the odds that during this project I would have the opportunity to photograph true Yellowstone bison without having to drive 1,252 miles to Wyoming to get some photos. This was something I had been looking forward to since I read the article on Christmas Eve,
Working with the Modoc Nation was smooth and they were incredibly welcoming and open to let me come up and photograph their herd and gave me an introduction to the Bison Range Manager - Jeremy Garrett. Jeremy and I exchanged a few calls and texts and had our day set to head up there. Jeremy is an incredibly interesting person. His background is ranching and farming in Missouri and made his way down to Miami, OK to work for the Modoc and their bison herd. Initially I thought that the Modoc were a small group and got 30 Yellowstone bison to start their herd but I was wrong and not even close. The Modoc and Jeremy are heavily involved in bison conservation and have a herd of around 300 head and they are located on multiple pieces of grazing land. They have bison from different herds all of the country. It was an eye opening conversation with Jeremy to say the least. The information he has in his head about bison and conservation is amazing and a true joy to talk to and learn from. An incredible experience.
So.. not only did I get to photograph Yellowstone bison I was able to get shots of numerous bison from different herds from all over the United States. Truly amazing. I had no idea we had a place like this in the state of Oklahoma. Yes we have the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve and the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge but this is on a different level in my opinion. The herd here is much smaller than those other two places but the diversity of animals in their different herds is unmatched by anything else in Oklahoma. Correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t think I am.
After some driving, talking and laughing we were done photographing the Modoc Bison and I said goodbye to my new friend and headed back to Oklahoma City. What an amazing day it was and hands down my best day photographing bison. Thanks to Jeremy and the entire Modoc Nation for their generosity and allowing me to come up for a few hours and experience what they get to see on a daily basis.
If you are interested in learning more about the Modoc Nation check out the link below.
JBP
