A future for European bison Bison bonasus in the Carpathian ecoregion?

All European bison Bison bonasus saved from extinction about 80 years ago originated from just 12 founders. Now, the population totals about 3,000 very closely related individuals. Almost 40% live in small groups in captivity, and the rest live in a few, isolated, free-ranging and semi-free herds. Although some negative influences of inbreeding have been reported, further loss of genetic variability can be prevented by allowing exchange of genes among sufficiently large numbers of animals. The Carpathian Range, the largest and least altered mountain range in Central Europe, offers the best ecological conditions to establish a viable metapopulation of European bison. In this paper, we describe recent advances in reestablishing free-ranging bison in the Carpathians, the programme's benefits for the future of the species, and its implications for the restoration of a missing ecological role in the ecoregion.