Bison are large bovines in the genus Bison (Greek: 'wild ox' (bison)) within the tribe Bovini. Two extant and numerous extinct species are recognised. The American bison and the European bison (wisent) are the largest surviving terrestrial animals in North America and Europe. They are typical artiodactyl (cloven hooved) ungulates, and are similar in appearance to other bovines such as cattle and true buffalo. They are broad and muscular with shaggy coats of long hair. Adults grow up to 2 metres (6 feet 7 inches) in height and 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) in length for American bison and up to 2.1 m (6 ft 11 in) in height and 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in) in length for European bison. American bison can weigh from around 400 to 1,270 kilograms (880 to 2,800 pounds) and European bison can weigh from 800 to 1,000 kg (1,800 to 2,200 lb). European bison tend to be taller than American bison. (Source: Wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA)