american bison.

i wanted to learn a little bit about the animal.
i'm getting it tattooed mainly for montana, but it's nice to know a bit more anyway.
here's a lil' list:

1. they are the largest land animals in north america.
   
2. males are larger than females, as holds true with most animals. but! both sexes have horns, which kind of rules. when it comes to birds, males are always so much more brightly colored than females. when it comes to most animals, females tend to get the short end of the stick.
   
3. they have beards. even the females. awesome.
4. they are generally kept in national parks and refuges for protection.
5. they are herbivores! considering the size of these animals, that really amazes me even though it makes sense considering their habitats.
   
6. females are ready to mate before males are. sounds familiar, heh. cute.
   
7. the general mating process is very similar to humans'. a male chooses a female, becomes very protective of her, they mate, and the female gives birth to one calf nine months later.
8. bison pretty much just hang out and eat all day in groups of about 20. each group includes a dominant male or female, and males and females generally separate from each other aside from mating season.