Abstract Research Highlight discussing : Retez, G., Oeser, J., Bluhm, H., Chistopolova, M., Hernandez‐Blanco, J. A., Klich, D., Olech, W., Perzanowski, K., Pkhitikov, A., Kowalczyk, R., Quétier, F., Skorupski, J., Aldea, A., Borowik, T., Catanoiu, S., Grancea, A., Heidelberg, A., Iosif, R., Kamiński, T., … Kuemmerle, T. (2025). Habitat preferences of European bison in contemporary European landscapes. Journal of Applied Ecology , https://doi.org/10.1111/1365‐2664.70233 . Reintroductions of large herbivores are increasingly promoted as nature‐based solutions for biodiversity loss, ecosystem restoration and climate resilience, yet their success depends critically on how animals interact with modern, human‐dominated landscapes. For European bison, a flagship species of megaherbivores restoration in Europe, long‐standing debates over whether the species is best suited to forests or open landscapes have fuelled contrasted management approaches, thereby slowing down conservation planning. Retez et al. (2025) move this discussion beyond by providing the first multi‐population assessment of how European bison use space across spatial scales, seasons and gradients of human influence. Rather than reinforcing a single habitat narrative, their work reframes European bison as a flexible megaherbivore whose habitat use reflects context, resources and human pressure. This perspective has far‐reaching implications: it broadens the range of landscapes considered suitable for bison restoration, highlights the need to anticipate socioecological trade‐offs such as agricultural conflict and positions European bison as a powerful model for understanding how large herbivores can function in Europe's highly modified ecosystems. By shifting the focus from ‘where bison belong’ to ‘how bison adapt’, the study provides a conceptual foundation for designing restoration strategies that are both ecologically effective and socially viable.
Froidevaux et al. (Sun,) studied this question.