10/03/2026
The Kainai Nation in southern Alberta has officially declared the plains bison (Iinnii) as wildlife. 🦬🌾
The Blood Tribe/ KáĂnawa is the 1st First Nation in Canada to make this declaration official and the second in Turtle Island after the Northern Arapaho Tribe officially classified Buffalo as Wildlife on the Wind River Reservation in 2025. This declaration changes how the Buffalo is recognized on its lands.
For Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) people, Buffalo has never been a commodity. The relationship goes back thousands of years. Buffalo sustained life here, and the land, the songs, ceremonies and the language all carry that relationship. The Kainai Nations declaration puts it plainly: Buffalo is “a part of us and we are part of Buffalo culturally, materially, and spiritually.”
That relationship was nearly severed. By the late 1800’s, the herd that once numbered in the tens of millions had been driven to the edge of extinction. The Buffalo that survived were brought back behind fences, and in the eyes of the law, classified alongside cattle as livestock. The Kainai Nation has now rejected that classification and offers a new way to be in relations with Iinnii.
This is significant well beyond the Nation’s borders. Saskatchewan and British Columbia already recognize the plains bison as wildlife. Alberta, the heart of buffalo country, still does not. The Kainai Nation has made a decision the province has not, and made it through its own authority as a sovereign nation.
The declaration also commits the Kainai Nation to the global goal of Nature Positive, working to restore the health, abundance, and resilience of the land through the knowledge, and eco-engineering skills of the Buffalo. The Buffalo is essential to help us to halt and restore biodiversity.
The Kainai Nation is one of the original signatories to the Buffalo Treaty, which brings Nations together in Cooperation, Renewal, and Restoration. This declaration is Kainai's own, made by the Nation for its people and its relatives. It also shows what is possible when Nations lead as we mark the 12th anniversary of the Buffalo Treaty.
Thanks to Kainai Nation leadership, the plains bison is now recognized as wildlife. It is a major step in the right direction for Buffalo, for Kainai, Niitsitapi, the land and for all of us who carry this relationship forward.
We honour and recognize the Kainai Nation, Chief and Council, and the community for their leadership for further honour the time immemorial relationship with Iinnii. 🦬
