To deliver the calf, she leaves the herd for a few days, then returns with the infant. Wisent cows are pregnant for 254 to 277 days, and give birth to a single calf. When she is fertile, he will mount her to mate. He will separate a female approaching oestrus from the group and guard her closely. The bull assesses his female’s receptiveness to mating by sampling their urine. If another mature bull approaches the herd, the two engage in a fight for their position. Younger bulls will also join female groups, but are usually prevented from mating by the older male. In the mating season, taking place from August to October, dominant bulls, usually 6 years or older, attempt to join a group of females and defend them from rival males. Mixed herds often come together to exchange individuals, so they do not live in exclusive familial units. Mature males live together in pairs or trios, except for breeding periods, where they fight each other for access to a group of females. Wisents live in mixed herds of females and their offspring, including sub adult males. Carefully managed populations of wisents have been successfully reintroduced in many areas of Europe, with further reintroductions planned. Deforestation and habitat loss though agricultural development, as well as inbreeding depression and hybridisation with domestic cattle, still threaten the species today. Consequently, the species was offered widespread protection, and, through captive breeding and reintroduction programmes, the wisent was saved from disappearing completely. Only 60 individuals remained in captive or managed groups. By the early 20th century, wisents were driven to extinction in the wild due to overhunting and habitat loss. Today, the wisent is considered a Near Threatened species. Cows are 1.7m to 2m tall at the shoulder, reach a length between 2.4m to 2.9m and a weight of 425kg to 635kg. Bulls grow 1.8m to 2.1m tall at the shoulder, 2.8m to 3.3m long, and weigh 615kg to 920kg. Both males and females have curled horns that point inwards towards the head and look otherwise alike, though males are larger by about 5%. The hindquarters are less bulky and are covered in a thinner coat. Wisents are characterised by their large head, shoulder hump and forequarters, all of which are covered in a brown, shaggy coat. The wisent (or Bison bonasus), also commonly referred to as the European bison, is a large ungulate living in the forests and meadows of Poland, Russia, Belarus, Lithuania, Ukraine, and Slovakia, in Eastern Europe. The Wisent, European Bison, European Wood Bison or Zubr ( Bison bonasus) is a large Eurasian ungulate featured in the Eurasia Animal Pack DLC for Planet Zoo.
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