“Of course damage does occur, and it shouldn’t be taken lightly. But we need to know what its actual scale is and how to deal with the problem. We do have a tool for defusing such conflicts: compensation paid for damage caused by protected species. Obviously, that doesn’t fully solve the issue.

Recently we used a drone to monitor oilseed rape fields where bison had been feeding, and compared them with fields the animals hadn’t entered. In late winter, the differences in the amount and quality of plant biomass were clear. In some places the rape had been very heavily grazed. But when we came back in May, during flowering, the differences between those crops were gone. The plants had recovered.
This suggests that the bison’s effect on the final yield may be smaller than the picture right after their visit would imply. I’m not claiming there’s no problem. I’m claiming we should study it properly instead of basing management on beliefs.

What’s more, driving bison off in the wrong way can sometimes cause greater losses than the grazing itself. If a herd of a hundred animals is chased across fields for several kilometres, the damage can be far greater than if it had been allowed to feed calmly and move on.”