 | Each spring, Bison shed their winter undercoat which is a fine, soft down |
| Bison down has properties common to four other exotic fibres:
 | cashmere from goats |
| down from camels |
| quiviut, the undercoat of the musk ox |
| down from yaks |
|
| Bison down is usually picked off the ground or fences and bushes, and may be pulled off
the animals in the squeeze |
| is found in various colours depending on the colour of the Bison and the body area in
which it grows |
| the down should be hand cleaned to remove straw and grass debris |
| needs to have long coarse hairs removed, as well as any intermediate hairs which are
usually white coloured |
| the down can be carded and spun into a fine yarn |
| can be readily washed as yarn, but mats if washed as loose fibres |
| down fibres do not shrink |
| down is highly crimped, yields a yarn with good loft and elasticity |
| is extremely warm, soft and durable |
| contains no lanolin so is moth resistant |
| down has a staple length of 1 -2 inches |
| may be blended with cashmere, fine wool or silk |
| down feels like cashmere but is stronger |
| dries very quickly, and becomes softer and fluffier with each washing |
| does not dye or bleach well, so patterns are achieved in knitting by using yarns of
various shades of natural bison fibre |
| down is costly to process in small quantity as a commercial venture |
| is well worth collecting the down since exotic fibres bring a high price per ounce when
sold in specialty yarn shoppes |
| handmade sweaters and vests, or hat and mitt sets are high fashion items |
| finely spun bison thread can be woven into a fabric similar to silk |
Start Collecting Bison Down Next Spring!
The Peace Country Bison Association is researching the possibility of processing Bison
Down at an Alberta Fibre Mill. Members are invited to pool their resources, since
processing costs are determined by quantity.
For more information, contact:
Adele Boucher
Fibre Co-ordinator, PCBA, ABA
Box 5354
Peace River, Alberta T8S 1R9
Phone: 780-332-2554
email: aboucher@telusplanet.net
For general information about Bison fibre or "Down" visit:
www.bisoncentre.com/resources/bce255/about_bison_fibre.pdf
