Lost Tracks

Lost Tracks: Buffalo National Park 1909–1939 is a “must read” for any bison enthusiast with an interest in the history of bison conservation in Canada. In this book, Jennifer Brower describes in clear and concise form the history of the establishment of Buffalo National Park in Wainwright and its significance in the protection of plains bison in Canada. While attempts have been made to pull this story together, none have been as well researched and presented as Lost Tracks.

Rarely has a species recovery effort been so successful as that of the plains bison in Buffalo National Park. Optimism for a better future for this magnificent species produced a population that thrived beyond expectation or hope. Its ability to bounce back from the brink of extinction had unforeseen consequences for the recovery effort itself, but also for plains and wood bison conservation effort over the century that followed.

Jennifer Brower has tied together the details of this complex and intriguing story in a readable and informative manner that makes the book a pleasure to read. Unravelling the intricate web of correspondence, conversations, and other documentation must have been a daunting task, but she has done a superlative job of making the complex topic easy to understand. With this ability she takes the reader through the early conservation efforts, the success story of the herd’s recovery, to the fiscal and corporate management policies that, in the long term, doomed the herd at Wainwright. Consequences of decisions made during the early 20^th century are still having profound impacts on bison management in the early 21^st century. The lessons on wildlife management learned from this population are as applicable today as they were 100 years ago. An excellent read, and highly recommended.

—Wes Olson, former Park Warden, Elk Island National Park