Bison bonanus, european bison) 
The Bison has world scientific, cultural and aesthetic value. Among therio fauna of Palearctic it is certain as the prime kind which should be protected, increased in number and widespread on the territory. During historical time the area of a bison covered extensive territory, including western, average and east parts of the Europe. In IV-XII century it has disappeared in the south of England, in XI - in the south of Sweden, in XIV-XIX - in the continental Europe.
In Europe 2 subspecies of the European bison were generated: flat European (Lithuanian, byelovezhsky) and Caucasian. Last freeliving kind of byelovezhsky bison has been killed in Belovezhskaya pushcha in 1919, Caucasian - in 1927. Now bisons are available in 30 countries where these animals are contained on will, and also in shelters. In Poland bisons live in 22 localities, in Germany - in 73, in Belarus there are 8 centres of the maintenance and cultivations of freeliving micropopulations (subpopulations) of bisons, 3 in bondage (the Grodno, Minsk zoos, national park Berezinsky).
The basic places of dwelling of bisons are deciduous woods and mixed coniferous-deciduous woods, inundated meadows where a grassy cover and a underbrush are well developed. During the spring and years periods bisons prefer places of dwelling in which there is a various and plentiful grassy vegetation. In the end of summer and in the autumn these animals keep in alder thickets and the mixed woods (nearby the meadows) with crude or humidified soils where not coarsened grassy vegetation is long kept more often. In the autumn accommodation of bisons is dated for places of dwelling in which there is the oak. As from November till March-April bisons are feed up, in the winter they concentrate near the stationary grounds with additional forage.
With 1946 on present time bisons are under protection. This anumal is joined in 1 (1981) and 2 (1993) editions of the Red book of Belarus. A greater role in the increase in number of a bison has played the national " Programs on preservation, moving and use of the bison in Belarus " (the Program "Bison") and practical realization of its 1-st stage. In national park "Byelovezhskaya pushcha" 78 bisons that were founders for 5 new centers of their maintenance and cultivation have been caught. The program "Bison" has been highly estimated by the international scientific community. With a view of ordering protection and use of separate micropopulations of the bison the Ministerial council of Belarus has accepted the special decision №560 from 21.4.1999 "About additional measures on protection and use of bisons" according to which the various status is given to micropopulations of bisons: for the bisons that lives in reserve and national parks - the status of the basic (insurance) genofund, and for the bisons living on other territories of republic - a reserve genofund. Protection and use of bisons of the basic genofund is carried out by way of, stipulated for kinds of the animals brought in the Red book of Belarus, and a reserve genofund - by way of, established for the wild animals, being objects of hunting for territories of Belarus, which extraction is supposed only under single sanctions. Ordering of the status of the bison was the important stimulus for its moving, increase in number of populations and number of these animals and finally - for long-term preservation of the bison as kind.
To bisons of a reserve genofund are reflected the bisons included in the book of bisons of a reserve genofund and adequating to following criteria concern: