There is one thing that Yellowstone National Park officials are quite clear about, and it’s to not run up on any of the wildlife within the park’s domain.
Seriously, a woman had to serve some jail time for running up on and messing with a bear at Yellowstone. Granted, it was only four days, and the consolation is that she didn’t get eaten by a bear, but still, they take it very seriously.
And for good reason… like… you could die.
According to Newsweek, Jason Quick and his family took a little trip to Yellowstone, when they noticed a ginormous Bison sitting off the side of the road. The average person doesn’t see a bison every day so he thought it would be cool to get up close and personal to it.
He uploaded video footage of the rare encounter on YouTube, and needless to say, he almost regretted his decision immediately.
As the family got closer and closer, Jason decided to run up on it as the family stayed back. That’s when the Bison looked back at him and gave him the good ol’ “death stare.”
You can hear the nervousness in his voice when it gave him the stare.
He was sure to put in the YouTube video description:
“Do. Not. Get this close to a Bison. Ever.
This is one of the dumbest things I’ve ever done, and that’s saying a lot.”
Newsweek reached out to the park to get some info on what to do in this kinda situation, and they responded:
“Give the animals space and never approach wildlife. The animals in Yellowstone are wild and unpredictable, no matter how calm they appear to be.
The safest (and often best) view of wildlife is from inside a car. Always stay at least 100 yards (91 m) away from bears and wolves, and at least 25 yards (23 m) away from all other animals, including bison and elk.”
Although bison typically very aggressive, there’s no telling what they’ll do when they feel threatened. They have been known to railroad people a person in the past. Remember the biker that literally got her pants ripped off?
Not to mention, some can get as big as 6.5 feet tall and 2,000 lbs.
There are only an estimated 30,000 bison in North America, and are managed for conservation as they are on the verge of extinction.
Yellowstone itself has about 2,300 to 5,500 bison within the park.
UPDATE: The video has since been removed…
But… since you’re already here, here’s a few idiots getting truck-sticked by a bison.
Enjoy.
