TY  - JOUR
AU  - Taylor,M. Scott
TI  - Buffalo Hunt: International Trade and the Virtual Extinction of the North American Bison
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 12969
PY  - 2007
Y2  - March 2007
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w12969
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w12969.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
M. Scott Taylor
IEE Canada Research Chair
Department of Economics
The University of Calgary
2500 University Drive, N.W.
Calgary, AB T2N 1N4
CANADA
Tel: 403/220-8912
Fax: 403/282-5262
E-Mail: mstaylor@ucalgary.ca
AB  - In the 16th century, North America contained 25-30 million buffalo; by the late 19th century less than 100 remained.  While removing the buffalo east of the Mississippi took settlers over 100 years, the remaining 10 to 15 million buffalo on the Great Plains were killed in a punctuated slaughter in a little more than 10 years.  I employ theory, data from international trade statistics, and first person accounts to argue that the slaughter on the plains was initiated by a foreign-made innovation and fueled by a foreign demand for industrial leather.  Ironically, the ultimate cause of this sad chapter in American environmental history was of European, and not American, origin.
ER  -