Effects of Horning and Rubbing Behavior by Bison (Bison bison) on Woody Vegetation in a Tallgrass Prairie Landscape
Abstract
Bryan R. Coppedge, James H. Shaw, Effects of Horning and Rubbing Behavior by Bison (Bison bison) on Woody Vegetation in a Tallgrass Prairie Landscape, The American Midland Naturalist, Vol. 138, No. 1 (Jul., 1997), pp. 189-196
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Bison are known to break tree saplings, but this is not a behavior reported for elk.
“Bison are known to break tree saplings (Bork et al., 1997; Coppedge & Shaw, 1997), but this is not a behavior reported for elk (Keigley & Frisina, 2008).”
From Bison alter the northern Yellowstone ecosystem by breaking aspen saplings (2023) · cites this paper as Coppedge & Shaw, 1997
Bison can kill mature trees by rubbing and horning, thereby removing bark and girdling the trees.
“Bison can kill mature trees by rubbing and horning, thereby removing bark and girdling the trees (Coppedge & Shaw, 1997; Soper, 1941).”
From Bison alter the northern Yellowstone ecosystem by breaking aspen saplings (2023) · cites this paper as Coppedge & Shaw, 1997
Cites
Biostatistical Analysis (2nd ed.).
Breen, T. J., & Zar, J. H. (1986) · Journal of the American Statistical Association · doi:10.2307/2289268 · Cited by 5,815 · see citing works
Grimm, E. C. (1984) · Ecological Monographs · doi:10.2307/1942499 · Cited by 315 · see citing works
Woody Plant Invasion of Unburned Kansas Bluestem Prairie
Bragg, T. B., & Hulbert, L. C. (1976) · Journal of Range Management · doi:10.2307/3897682 · Cited by 315 · see citing works
Social behavior of the American buffalo (Bison bison bison)
McHugh, T. (1958) · Zoologica : scientific contributions of the New York Zoological Society. · doi:10.5962/p.206661 · Cited by 218 · see citing works
History, Range, and Home Life of the Northern Bison
Soper, J. D. (1941) · Ecological Monographs · doi:10.2307/1943298 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Inouye, R. S., Allison, T. D., & Johnson, N. C. (1994) · Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club · doi:10.2307/2997181 · Cited by 110 · see citing works
Expansion of gallery forest on Konza Prairie Research Natural Area, Kansas, USA
Knight, C. L., Briggs, J. M., & Nellis, M. (1994) · Landscape Ecology · doi:10.1007/bf00124378 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
Injury and Death or Recovery of Trees in Prairie Climate
Albertson, F. W., & Weaver, J. E. (1945) · Ecological Monographs · doi:10.2307/1948428 · Cited by 101 · see citing works
Historical development of gallery forests in northeast Kansas
Abrams, M. D. (1986) · Plant Ecology · doi:10.1007/bf00032124 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
The bison of Yellowstone National Park
Meagher, M. M., & States., U. (1973) · doi:10.5962/bhl.title.70842 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
Bison extirpation may have caused aspen expansion in western Canada
Campbell, C., Campbell, I. D., Blyth, C. B., & McAndrews, J. H. (1994) · Ecography · doi:10.1111/j.1600-0587.1994.tb00113.x · Cited by 94 · see citing works
The Vegetation of Alberta: IV. The Poplar Association and Related Vegetation of Central Alberta
Moss, E. H. (1932) · Journal of Ecology · doi:10.2307/2256085 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
How many bison originally populated western rangelands
Shaw, J. H. (1995) · UA Campus Repository (The University of Arizona) · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Self-citationEffect of Fire on Tree Spatial Patterns in a Tallgrass Prairie Landscape
Briggs, J. M., & Gibson, D. J. (1992) · Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club · doi:10.2307/2996761 · Cited by 65 · see citing works
Influence of Animals on Pristine Conditions on the Canadian Grasslands
England, R. E., & Devos, A. (1969) · Journal of Range Management · doi:10.2307/3896187 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
Impact of Moose Browsing on Boreal-type Forests of Isle Royale National Park
Snyder, J. D., & Janke, R. A. (1976) · The American Midland Naturalist · doi:10.2307/2424235 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa) Invasion of Nebraska Sandhills Prairie
Steinauer, E. M., & Bragg, T. B. (1987) · The American Midland Naturalist · doi:10.2307/2425792 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Summer and Fall Browse Utilization by an Alaskan Bison Herd
Waggoner, V., & Hinkes, M. (1986) · Journal of Wildlife Management · doi:10.2307/3801921 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Influence of fire and soil on distribution of eastern red cedar in the Ozarks.
Arend, J. L. (1950) · Journal of Forestry · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Quantitative Analysis of Wallowing in a Confined Bison Herd
Reinhardt, V. (1985) · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 21 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Briggs, J. M., Knapp, A. K., & Brock, B. L. (2002) · The American Midland Naturalist · doi:10.1674/0003-0031(2002)147[0287:eowpit]2.0.co;2 · Cited by 264 · see citing works
AVIAN RESPONSE TO LANDSCAPE CHANGE IN FRAGMENTED SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS GRASSLANDS
Coppedge, B. R., Engle, D. M., Masters, R. E., & Gregory, M. S. (2001) · Ecological Applications · doi:10.1890/1051-0761(2001)011[0047:artlci]2.0.co;2 · Cited by 237 · see citing works
Self-citationSANDERSON, E. W., REDFORD, K. H., WEBER, B., AUNE, K., BALDES, D., BERGER, J., CARTER, D., CURTIN, C., DERR, J., DOBROTT, S., et al. (2008) · Conservation Biology · doi:10.1111/j.1523-1739.2008.00899.x · Cited by 193 · see citing works
Ratajczak, Z., Nippert, J. B., Briggs, J. M., & Blair, J. M. (2014) · Journal of Ecology · doi:10.1111/1365-2745.12311 · Cited by 167 · see citing works
El‐Saadony, M. T., Alkhatib, F., Alzahrani, S. O., Shafi, M. E., Abdel-Hamid, S. E., Taha, T. F., Aboelenin, S. M., Soliman, M. M., & Ahmed, N. H. (2021) · Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.sjbs.2021.04.066 · Cited by 110 · see citing works
The Importance of Species: Perspectives on Expendability and Triage
McPhearson, T. (2003) · Integrative and Comparative Biology · doi:10.1093/icb/43.4.603 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
Ratajczak, Z., Briggs, J. M., Goodin, D. G., Luo, L., Mohler, R. L., Nippert, J. B., & Obermeyer, B. K. (2016) · Rangeland Ecology & Management · doi:10.1016/j.rama.2016.03.004 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Range Expansion of Barred Owls, Part II: Facilitating Ecological Changes
Livezey, K. B. (2009) · The American Midland Naturalist · doi:10.1674/0003-0031-161.2.323 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Effects of bison on willow and cottonwood in northern Yellowstone National Park
Painter, L. E., & Ripple, W. J. (2012) · Forest Ecology and Management · doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2011.10.010 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
McMillan, B. R., Cottam, M. R., & Kaufman, D. W. (2000) · The American Midland Naturalist · doi:10.1674/0003-0031(2000)144[0159:wboabb]2.0.co;2 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
Historic Distribution and Challenges to Bison Recovery in the Northern Chihuahuan Desert
List, R., Ceballos, G., Curtin, C. G., Gogan, P. J. P., PACHECO, J., & Truett, J. C. (2007) · Conservation Biology · doi:10.1111/j.1523-1739.2007.00810.x · Cited by 40 · see citing works
McMillan, N. A., Kunkel, K. E., Hagan, D. L., & Jachowski, D. S. (2019) · Restoration Ecology · doi:10.1111/rec.12856 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Wolves, Elk, Bison, and Secondary Trophic Cascades in Yellowstone National Park
Ripple, W. J., Painter, L. E., Beschta, R. L., & Gates, C. C. (2010) · The Open Ecology Journal · doi:10.2174/1874213001003030031 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Coppedge, B. R., & Shaw, J. H. (2000) · ACTA THERIOLOGICA · doi:10.4098/at.arch.00-10 · Cited by 29 · see citing works
Self-citationHuman-Bison Relations as Sites of Settler Colonial Violence and Decolonial Resurgence
Mamers, D. T. (2019) · Humanimalia · doi:10.52537/humanimalia.9500 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Wendt, J. A. F., McWethy, D. B., Widga, C., & Shuman, B. N. (2022) · Quaternary Science Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2022.107472 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Grassland Soil Depressions: Relict Bison Wallows or Inherent Landscape Heterogeneity?
Coppedge, B. R., Fuhlendorf, S. D., Engle, D. M., Carter, B. J., & Shaw, J. H. (1999) · The American Midland Naturalist · doi:10.1674/0003-0031(1999)142[0382:gsdrbw]2.0.co;2 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Self-citationCan bison play a role in conserving habitat for endangered sandhills species in Canada?
Fox, T. A., Hugenholtz, C. H., Bender, D. J., & Gates, C. C. (2012) · Biodiversity and Conservation · doi:10.1007/s10531-012-0255-9 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Abella, S. R., Menard, K. S., Schetter, T. A., Sprow, L. A., & Jaeger, J. F. (2020) · Plant Ecology · doi:10.1007/s11258-020-01075-4 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Grassland bird diversity and abundance in the presence of native and non-native grazers
Boyce, A. J., Shamon, H., Kunkel, K. E., & McShea, W. J. (2021) · Avian Conservation and Ecology · doi:10.5751/ace-01944-160213 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Hess, A., Hess, R. J., Hess, J. L. M., Paulan, B., & Hess, J. A. M. (2014) · Journal of Insect Conservation · doi:10.1007/s10841-014-9640-x · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Bison alter the northern Yellowstone ecosystem by breaking aspen saplings
Painter, L. E., Beschta, R. L., & Ripple, W. J. (2023) · Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.1002/ece3.10369 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
American Bison (Bison bison): A Rangeland Wildlife Continuum
Ranglack, D. H., Plumb, G., & Rogers, L. R. (2023) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-34037-6_23 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Review of priority welfare issues of commercially raised bison in North America
Rioja-Lang, F. C., Galbraith, J. K., McCorkell, R. B., Spooner, J. M., & Church, J. S. (2018) · Applied Animal Behaviour Science · doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2018.10.014 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Hedtcke, J. L., Posner, J. L., Rosemeyer, M., & Albrecht, K. (2009) · Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems · doi:10.1017/s1742170509990160 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Forest floor plant diversity drives the use of mature spruce forests by European bison
Jaroszewicz, B., Borysowicz, J., & Cholewińska, O. (2020) · Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.1002/ece3.7094 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
The Impact of Horning by Wildebeest on Woody Vegetation of the Serengeti Ecosystem
Estes, R. D., Raghunathan, T. E., & van Vleck, D. (2008) · Journal of Wildlife Management · doi:10.2193/2008-105 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Composition, Stand Structure, and Biomass Estimates of “Willow Rings” on the Canadian Prairies
Mirck, J., & Schroeder, W. R. (2013) · BioEnergy Research · doi:10.1007/s12155-013-9338-z · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Bison and cattle grazing increase soil nitrogen cycling in a tallgrass prairie ecosystem
Anguiano, N. V., Freeman, K. M., Figge, J. D., Hawkins, J. H., & Zeglin, L. H. (2024) · Biogeochemistry · doi:10.1007/s10533-024-01144-0 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Annual survival and breeding dispersal of a migratory passerine, the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Becker, A. J., Roeder, D. V., Husak, M. S., & Murphy, M. T. (2018) · Journal of Field Ornithology · doi:10.1111/jofo.12239 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Doan, T., Liccioli, S., Sliwinski, M. S., Samson, C., Biligetu, B., Sawatzky, M., & Guo, X. (2024) · Rangeland Ecology & Management · doi:10.1016/j.rama.2023.12.002 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Identification of factors that aid carbon sequestration in Illinois agricultural systems
Krug, E. C., & Hollinger, S. E. (2003) · Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Wyckoff, P. H., Greiman, R., Krueger, A., & Luce, L. (2012) · The Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society · doi:10.3159/torrey-d-11-00051.1 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
American bison Bison bison (Linnaeus, 1758)
Plumb, G., White, P. J. C., & Aune, K. E. (2014) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9781139568098.011 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Object-horning as advertising and marking behaviour in male bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus)?
Wronski, T., Kabasa, J. D., Plath, M. W., & Apio, A. (2007) · Journal of Ethology · doi:10.1007/s10164-007-0048-x · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Modification of plant communities by bison in Riding Mountain National Park
Tarleton, P., & Lamb, E. G. (2020) · Ecoscience · doi:10.1080/11956860.2020.1850622 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Cerney, D. L., Eyton, J. R., & Butler, D. R. (2008) · Geocarto International · doi:10.1080/10106040801966654 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Patterns of Bison Hair Use in Nests of Tallgrass Prairie Birds
Coppedge, B. R. (2009) · Lincoln (University of Nebraska) · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citationObject-horning in goitered gazelle: Agonistic or marking behaviour?
Blank, D. A., & Yang, W. (2013) · Behavioural Processes · doi:10.1016/j.beproc.2013.12.005 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Bite by Bite: How Ungulate Browsing Shapes North America’s Forest Future
Hardalau, D., Stefanescu, V., Bakševičius, M., Manton, M., Ruffner, C. M., Brazaitis, G., Ionescu, G., & Ionescu, O. M. (2025) · Forests · doi:10.3390/f16071079 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Precipitation and Temperature Impact on Woody Plant Invaders in the Flint Hills Region of Kansas
Li, B., & McKenzie, D. A. (2020) · Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science · doi:10.1660/062.123.0302 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Red-winged Blackbird Nest Success in Oklahoma Tallgrass Prairie
Coppedge, B. R. (2015) · Proceedings of the Oklahoma Academy of Science · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Self-citationFeedbacks Between Fires and Soil Erosion Processes at the Desert Margins
Ravi, S. (2008) · doi:10.18130/v3k26j · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Captivity may broadly impede bison ecological function: space, season, and management
Ritson, R., Shannon, J. M., Hersey, K. R., Schoenecker, K. A., Kunkel, K. E., Kinka, D., Beard, D., & Ranglack, D. H. (2026) · Frontiers in Conservation Science · doi:10.3389/fcosc.2026.1687551 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Geluso, K., Kruse, C. G., & Harner, M. J. (2020) · Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and affiliated societies · doi:10.32873/unl.dc.tnas.40.6 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Development of a grazing monitoring program for Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado
Zeigenfuss, L. C., & Schoenecker, K. A. (2015) · Antarctica A Keystone in a Changing World · doi:10.3133/ofr20151136 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
(2001) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-012710001-2/50259-8 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Manuwal, T. A., & Sweitzer, R. A. (2010)
Panas, T. R. (2022) · Plains Anthropologist · doi:10.1080/00320447.2022.2077605
Formation and ecology of oak shrubby layers during long‐term oak savanna restoration
Abella, S. R., Menard, K. S., Schetter, T. A., Sprow, L. A., Walters, T. L., Brewer, L. G., Berghel, K. M., & Chiquoine, L. P. (2025) · Restoration Ecology · doi:10.1111/rec.14386
The role of non‐plant species in ecological succession and implications for restoration
Carlson, M., Ruth, E., Rodriguez, J., & Shackelford, N. (2025) · Restoration Ecology · doi:10.1111/rec.70170
Noble, S. L., Ratajczak, Z., & Noble, B. (2025) · Ecological Applications · doi:10.1002/eap.70108
Noble, S. L., & Ratajczak, Z. (2026) · Natural Areas Journal · doi:10.3375/2162-4399-46.1.2
Castro, A. J. M., Pelz-Serrano, K., la Lama, G. C. M., & List, R. (2026) · Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.3389/fevo.2026.1869197
- Authors
- Coppedge, B. R., & Shaw, J. H.
- Venue
- American Midland Naturalist
- Publisher
- JSTOR
- Published
- 1997-07
- Volume
- 138
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 189
- ISSN
- 0003-0031 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2319950286
- Cited by
- 56
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 3 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 2
- FWCI
- 1.89
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The American Midland Naturalist (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Rangeland and Wildlife Management
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Ecology and biodiversity studies
- Keywords
- bison, woody vegetation, tallgrass prairie, plant damage, ungulate browsing, prairie restoration
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review