Two males and four females were taken from the Bison Breeding Centre to the reserve called “Bryansk Forest”.

Extensive preparatory work preceded the transportation; even excursions had to be cancelled for several days. Driving, animal examination, test taking, vaccination and departure documentation clearance is just a small part of the things the breeding centre staff had to do.

Today in Russia, there are about 30 places of free bison habitat including forests of the Orel, Kaluga and Bryansk regions. While in the Kaluga and Orel regions, a wild herd consists of more than 300 bison, in Bryansk animals have been introduced into the wild only since 2011, so their number is much smaller. Transportation of the next part of the forest giants from the breeding centre continued realization of the program of bison resettlement in their natural habitats.

In Bryansk, two male bison named Mulev and Muzevs, which were a year and a half, and mature female bison Uriella, Murakel, Mugdalena and Multyashka were met by the reserve staff, media representatives and Alexander Bogomaz, the acting governor of the Bryansk Region. Bison felt well during the transportation and immediately began to explore the new territory. Before the animals “are gone to the forest”, they are placed in a quarantine paddock for a month and they meet their wild fellows through the fence.

Experts of the Prioksko-Terrasny Reserve believe that animals brought from the breeding centre are able to increase the bison offspring of “Bryansk Forest” and thus form a viable population of wild individuals.