10/04/2026
I regret not working for him when he was alive at Vermejo Ted Turner Reserve when he was alive!!! I have a tremendous amount of respect for his conservation efforts and success!!
When media mogul Ted Turner bought a Montana cattle ranch in 1989, he immediately began dismantling its cattle operation—choosing instead to return the land to native bison.
The transformation went far beyond simply swapping one grazer for another. Across the 113,613-acre Flying D Ranch, nestled between the Gallatin and Madison rivers, workers tore down hundreds of miles of internal barbed-wire fencing as cattle gave way to free-ranging bison. A permanent conservation easement established that same year ensured the vast open space would remain protected from future commercial development.
Today, roughly 4,500 bison roam the Flying D, forming one of the largest private bison herds in North America. Beyond the herd, the landscape itself has undergone a dramatic recovery: over 5,000 acres of former cropland have been restored to native grassland, while more than 70 miles of vital stream habitats have been rehabilitated and protected.
The ecological payoff has been extraordinary. By 2024, wildlife surveys had documented the presence of every single large mammal native to the lower 48 states on the ranch, with the sole exception of the Canada lynx.
What started as a bold real estate purchase evolved into a landmark, decades-long experiment in rebuilding a thriving, working ecosystem around native species.
