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- Taylor Ranch in Cambria welcomed its first and second newborn bison calve this week.
- Eating bison meat is popular and trendy. Advocates tout health benefits, too.
- The Taylors do not offer ranch tours because bison can pose safety risks.
They’re celebrating birthin’ season in Cambria, but so far, they’re not passing out cigars. The latest notable arrival — a first for the Taylor Ranch on Highway 46 — is a newborn baby bison.
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The Taylors estimate the calf was born sometime Monday night or early Tuesday morning, Susannah Taylor told The Tribune on Wednesday.
The baby’s name? Not fully confirmed yet, she said, although for now, the working moniker is “Scout.”
That’s what she wants, but 4-year-old son Wyatt wants to name it Melon. Nobody but Wyatt knows why, and his siblings (Robert, 2, and Sadie, 6 months) aren’t tattling.
The bison mom doesn’t have a name — not all the cows are given one, Taylor said — and the calf’s dad has two name options, Dozer or Jorge.
The herd’s female bison that do have names have whimsical ones, such as Coco Chanel, Dolly Parton and Cattywompus. Coco Chanel is the calf’s self-appointed guardian angel, a combination midwife and babysitter, Taylor said.
Not only that, a second bison calf was born on the ranch Thursday morning, Taylor said, much to the curiosity of cattle calves nearby, and the consternation of the cattle moms.
Bison on SLO County’s North Coast?
With the two new calves, the Taylor Ranch’s bison herd now totals 27 head.
Garrett Taylor, Susannah’s husband, started the herd about three years ago.
“He loves them and thinks they’re really beautiful,” she said, noting the bison provide a lot of benefits beyond the traffic-stopping addition to the spectacular hillside scenery.
“They’re magnificent, and they’re also the only native bovine grazers in America,” Taylor said. “We love how perfectly they fit into any ecosystem. They really help the land and eat invasives. They feed the nitrogen cycle.”
“And we really love the meat,” she added with a grin.
Ranchers started raising bison for commercial meat production in the 1960s, but the industry didn’t grow rapidly until the late 1980s, according to Red Frazier Bison’s website.
Now, bison meat is trendy, and is even available at Costco.
The Taylors sell bison meat at their Saturday morning ranch popup from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on North Green Valley Road at the junction with Highway 46. Look for the directional signage.
Taylor Ranch bison meat also is available through select retailers, such as the Avocado Shack in Morro Bay.
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Bison can be dangerous, so beware
The Taylors don’t do ranch tours, although Susannah Taylor would have liked to do that.
“It’s a safety issue,” she said sadly. “We realized it’s not worth the risk.”
The beasts are big, heavy — bulls weigh up to 2,000 pounds — strong, unpredictable and notoriously grouchy.
“If a bison’s tail is standing straight up, watch out! It may be ready to charge,” the U.S. Department of Interior’s website said. “Remember that they are unpredictable and can charge at any moment … They can run up to 35 mph, plus they’re extremely agile. It’s great to love the bison, but love them from a distance.”
They’re also nearsighted, but have great senses of smell and hearing, so sneaking up on them is inadvisable for many reasons.
American bison have been this country’s national mammal since 2016, according to the DOI website.
After being hunted to near extinction, the herds of millions were reduced to a few hundred, but a coalition of Indigenous tribes, states, DOI, ranchers and environmentalists banded together to bring them back.
Where are the bison on the North Coast?
The Taylors’ bison aren’t always where the public can see them from their vehicles, but when the big beasts are in view, the sight can cause a lot of rubbernecking and pointing.
Some folks pull to the Highway 46 shoulder or verge to snap selfies with the critters in the distance, or take other photos.
When they are visible from the highway, the bison likely will be about 1.5 miles from Highway 1 on the south side of the hilly route between Cambria and Paso Robles.
This story was originally published September 4, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline “First baby bison born at SLO County ranch. ‘They’re magnificent’.”
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