The steppe bison was a massive, wide-ranging herbivore that once dominated the mammoth steppe.

Nature · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Before modern bison roamed the plains, the steppe bison thrived across a vast biome stretching from Spain to Canada. Reaching over 1,000 kilograms, these formidable creatures were not just passive grazers but complex mixed feeders that navigated a world of cave lions, scimitar-toothed cats, and early human hunters.

The steppe bison (Bison priscus) was a colossal inhabitant of the mammoth steppe, an expansive and highly productive ecosystem that spanned the northern hemisphere from the Middle Pleistocene until the Holocene. Anatomically similar to the modern European bison, these animals could reach heights of over two meters at the withers and weights exceeding 1,000 kilograms. Their physical presence was defined by a distinct hump above the front legs and impressive, laterally projecting horn cores that evolved in size across successive subspecies, from the early Bison priscus gigas to the later Bison priscus mediator.

Unlike the strictly grazing American bison, the steppe bison was a versatile mixed feeder. Dental microwear and DNA analysis of frozen mummies—such as the 36,000-year-old 'Blue Babe' found in Alaska—reveal a diet rich in forbs, shrubs, and various grasses. This dietary flexibility allowed them to persist in diverse environments, though they remained vulnerable to predators like cave hyenas and cave lions. The latter is famously evidenced by the claw marks and tooth punctures found on the 'Blue Babe' specimen, which was so well-preserved that researchers once famously dined on a portion of its neck.

The extinction of the steppe bison remains a subject of intense scientific debate, typically categorized within the Late Quaternary extinction event. While climate change and human hunting are widely cited as the primary drivers, the exact weight of each factor is contested. Recent modeling suggests that while the species was heavily impacted by both, small refugia in northern Siberia might have allowed them to persist longer had human hunting pressure been absent. While some fossil and environmental DNA records suggest survival into the mid-Holocene, many researchers now view claims of existence later than 8,700 years ago with significant skepticism.

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