Learn about the unique technique our ancestors developed to hunt the huge Buffalo cows of North America.
An oil painting created by (William Lee) entitled “Buffalo Driven” in 1947.
For thousands of years, the Native Americans of North America hunted bison cows, as these peoples became so completely dependent on these animals for their lives that they exploited everything possible that their bodies and carcasses contained.
Leather was used to make clothes, shelter and mattresses, hair and tail were used to make ropes and brushes, and muscle tendons were used to make tissues, glue and ropes for hunting bows, while bones and horns were used to make a wide number of daily use tools, all in order to feed, clothe and shelter a community Kamel, this community that had to follow the system of "collective hunting".
With good planning, organization, and some luck, these prehistoric hunters succeeded in killing dozens, even hundreds, of these animals at once, using only a few weapons.
Some of these techniques developed by Native Americans for catching Buffalo cows were the “Buffalo Cliff,” whereby herds of Buffalo were driven over the edge of a cliff to their death after falling off the top.
A painting by the artist ( Charles Morrison Russell ) entitled “Buffalo being led from the top of the cliff.”
In order to lure these huge animals to the top of the cliff and frighten them to the point of panic, the dispersal of their herds and finally their downfall, a painstaking effort that involved careful planning was necessary, but the reward was great and worth it, as one leap provided an entire village with food, clothing and shelter for months. perfect.
The first task for this "death leap" was to find a suitable cliff, and the best locations for this task began with good pastures attractive to herds of bison, and then smoothly extended to a steep cliff edge of ten meters or more.
Once such a site has been located, the hunters begin to prepare for the task by piling many piles of rocks and logs into a V-shape, the angle of which points towards the edge of the cliff.
Then one of the hunters wraps himself in the skin of a bison calf and disguises himself under it, then tries to lure the herd to the entrance of the trap, and this disguised hunter sometimes mooed in order to attract the attention of the herd and then started moving towards the cliff.
As the herd advanced closer to the entrance of the trap, other Hunters hidden behind the rocks were jumping around screaming and waving their pelts in order to keep the herd within the V formation while another group of Hunters startled the herd from behind.
As the herd advances towards the edge, those in the front ranks see what fate awaits them below, so they try to stop, but the dispersion of the entire herd and the force of the massed stampede forces her to fall from the top of the cliff, ending up at its foot.
Suddenly the herds of Buffalos start to fall off the cliff - Photo: Sylvia Fanjoy
This fall kills some instantly, and injures others, and the hunters then end the lives of the fallen Buffalo survivors. Shortly after that, the great skinning process begins, and the fresh meat is consumed immediately, dried and stored for later.
Huge leg bones are also crushed in order to extract the marrow that is inside them, and this process of slaughtering, skinning and cooking may continue for entire weeks, at the end of which the Native Americans find themselves gaining large stocks of provisions consisting of dried meat, and hides that may be used to make clothes Including blankets, mattresses, shirts, coats, slippers, shelters etc., no part of an animal is wasted without benefiting in one way or another.
This type of hunting was a social event that took place 12,000 years ago and continued until at least 1,500 AD, and at a time when horses were used, the use of those horses, weapons and hunting tools allowed the best hunters to pursue and hunt herds of bison in order to obtain fresh meat. All year round, unlike what used to be a collective hunt in the past, i.e. “buffalo dredging”, this event soon fell into oblivion and was no longer used as a method of hunting.
A diorama at a museum in Montana shows a cliffside buffalo hunt.
Archaeologists have discovered dozens of sites across North America where some of these hunting operations took place, and these sites are often identified by rock rubble, bone fragments, stone tools, and traces of hunting cow processing sites, which were not far away. about the fishing site.
One of the oldest preserved sites, with many features still intact and complete, is the Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump site, located where the plateaus of the Rocky Mountains begin to rise from the plains, 18 km km northwest of Fort McCloud, Alberta, Canada, on Highway 785.
The cliff itself is 300 meters long, and at its highest point overlooks a valley with a drop of ten meters. This site was used 6,000 years ago, and bone remains were found 12 meters below the surface.
Some of the interesting Buffalo Cliff sites include Madison's Buffalo Cliff site in Gallatin County, Montana, the Ulm Bishcon site in Cascade County, Montana, and the Olsen Chubbuck Killed Bison site. in Colorado, the Disappointment Camp site in Glacier County, Montana, the Buffalo Cliff site in Foure in Crook County, Wyoming, and the Bonfire Shelter site in Texas.
Model of the Buffalo Escarpment in Fore, Crook County Museum .
Buffalo Cliff (Head Smashed Inn), Canada - Photo: uleth
Ancient Buffalo buffalo bones unearthed from the Buffalo Escarpment in Fore, Crook County, Wyoming. Photo: Jeff the quiet /Wikimedia
Buffalo (Madison) Cliff in State Park - Photo: AllAroundTheWest /Flickr
The 15-meter-high Buffalo Cliff (Ulm Bishkon) - Photo: Travis S. /Flickr
Source: websites