Our nation is about to get a new national animal. It’s bigger than you might imagine and definitely different than the reigning champ, the bald eagle, but we never would have expected this.
America’s national animal has been for 234 long years the bald eagle. It has been the sole symbol of the United States, land of the free, home of the brave.
But now it seems that there is a new beast in town that will become an American symbol for years to come.
The new contender? The Bison. The National Bison Legacy Act was passed by Congress and is expected to pass the Senate next week. According to CNN, the act denotes the bison as America’s national mammal and a “historical symbol of the United States.”
Bison could be elevated to a stature approaching that of the bald eagle https://t.co/KHKl4ChUEo
— NBC Los Angeles (@NBCLA) April 30, 2016
While the bald eagle will still represent the nation, it will no longer be the sole animal to hold that position. The bison will join the bald eagle as the national animal, the oak as the national tree, and the rose as the national flower, and will become the new national mammal for the country.