My palms are sweaty…
Yellowstone National Park has long been the ultimate place for people from around the world to see many of America’s greatest wildlife attractions, from bears and wolves to elk, moose, and the majestic American bison.
At one point as many as 60 million bison roamed the western rangelands of the US, and while we all know of the devastation early settlers made to the species which took the number to less than 1,000, their ranks have stabilized due to intensive repopulation efforts from the National Park Service and various state’s Fish & Wildlife departments.
A healthy 30,000 currently live in conservation herds around the country and the species is no longer designated Endangered.
American bison check in at a whopping 6 feet tall, 12 feet long and top the scales at up to 2,800lbs, which is about the weight of a Toyota Corolla, yet we’ve seen no shortage of people getting way to close to these beasts and almost paying the ultimate price.
Pretty much every person understands that bison are large, but maybe this latest video of one halting traffic by charging down the road puts that size into perspective.
Wallace DeYoung is a wildlife photographer and natural history historian who was touring Yellowstone Nation Park with his wife a few weeks ago when they were forced to stop their car in the middle of the road for two bison who didn’t seem to care much for traffic patterns.
One of the bison in particular seems to enjoy the pavement and took off directly at Wallace’s car and he had just enough time to get out his phone and capture the intense video, showing just how scary a charging bison is.
Very good work keeping their calm too, as both he and his wife didn’t panic and the bison pulled up short, deciding not to ruin their car.
Stay wild out there.
Yellowstone Bison Tosses Off-Leash Pit Bull Into The Air
That pit bull, named Mac, is one very lucky dog.
Richard, on the other hand?
Richard done messed up…
A video from 2014 has gone viral once again almost 8 years to the day, serving as a reminder that nature doesn’t play games, and dad has issues multi-tasking.
Taken in Yellowstone National Park, onlookers stopped their cars to marvel at the majestic creatures, when apparently “Richard” screwed up bad, lost track of the dog, and then this happened.
Mac goes charging for the bison, who, without much effort at all, truck sticks him into the air with a flick of the head.
Luckily, the dog ran off and was ok, but it could’ve been much worse. I mean, good thing they didn’t pull over to observe a mama grizzly bear and her cubs. Mac would’ve turned into dinner real quick.
But of course, the best part of the entire video…
“JESUS CHRIST, RICHARD!”
C’mon, Richard.
The extended cut.
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Eerie Footage From Yellowstone Captures Massive Wolf Wandering Through The Night
Hate to have that thing come after you…
Yellowstone National Park might just be the most incredible place in the entire United States.
No matter what time of day you go, what time of year… you’re always bound to see something incredible. Whether it’s bear, elk, wolves, or bison, you’re getting a front row seat to the best that American wildlife has to offer.
Siddharth Gandhi was able to catch an incredible moment on video (in 2017) when a massive grey wolf wandered onto a two lane road in Lamar Valley at Yellowstone National Park. His video racked up over 11M views to date.
This thing is a BEAST… I mean, it looks like a dire wolf straight out of Game of Thrones.
Equally as majestic as it is terrifying.
Check it out up close… nature is a beautiful thing.
The best, and craziest, from the great outdoors…only from Riff Outdoors
Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Joins Wolf Pack On Elk Hunt, Steals The Kill
Work smarter, not harder.
In the wild, it’s first come first serve, survival of the fittest, only the strong survive, and most critters will go to extreme lengths to make sure they get fed.
But… even in the wild, there’s such as thing as freeloaders, and I’m not talking about scavengers.
One particular grizzly bear at Yellowstone National Park came up with a genius idea to follow along a wolf pack in search of its prey. And no, the grizzly was not there to make friends.
According to The Hill, this grizzly was following the Junction Butte wolf pack as they were in the midst of an elk hunt back in October of 2021. The wolves tracked down an elk, and when they captured it, the grizzly made sure it wasn’t gonna leave hungry.
It jumped in and stole the carcass, taking home a nice meal.
This “rare phenomenon” is known as kleptoparasitism, which is where one animal steals the resources of another animal/pack of animals.
The National Park Service (NPS) weighed in on the rare occurrence:
“This bear seems to have figured out that following the wolves in the morning will increase its chances of encountering a high-calorie meal.”
The NPS also said that wolves will typically yield for bears, because it puts their own safety at risk, knowing that they don’t stand much of a chance against the much larger creatures, and they simply wait their turn.
According to the NPS, it’s a rare occurrence because following a wolf pack around takes a lot of energy for the bear, but can be very rewarding, as an elk carcass is high in protein and fat, which is pivotal for hibernation.
“On the morning of October 21, 2021 visitors watching wildlife in Yellowstone’s northern range were amazed when they saw an adult grizzly bear seemingly hunting elk with the Junction Butte wolf pack. Wolves and bears typically compete with one another for prey, so why might this be happening?
Typically, wolves will yield to incoming bears. Since hunting is dangerous and often unsuccessful, it’s better for wolves to wait their turn at a carcass that has been usurped by a bear than it is for them to continue hunting.
From the bear’s perspective, it takes a lot of energy to follow a wolf pack around, but the reward is high if it successfully takes over a carcass. A fresh elk carcass is a wonderful source of fat and protein for a grizzly bear preparing for hibernation.
This bear seems to have figured out that following the wolves in the morning will increase its chances of encountering a high-calorie meal.”
Ever work on a group project where one dumbass doesn’t do any of the work, but still gets a good grade? This is nature’s version of that…
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