Mule Deer Sneaks Into Bison Herd To Escape Hungry Coyote At Yellowstone National Park

Deer hides in bison herd
Viral Hog

Talk about quick thinking.

Coyotes can be some pretty dangerous predators, especially if they have a partner. Not known to hunt in large packs like wolves, coyotes generally keep it much smaller, like their immediate family. Most of the time they hunt solo, but can work together, making it much more difficult for their prey to escape.

A mule deer found itself being chased down by one of these coyotes in Yellowstone National Park. Of course, deer typically feed off vegetation, acorns, and things of that nature and when they’re young, they are the perfect prey for coyotes.

In the footage, you see the deer frantically running away, but luckily enough, there’s a herd of bison nearby. In a desperate attempt, the deer runs to the group of stampeding bison, and quickly gets lost in the large number of the creatures.

You can see the coyote trying to figure out where the deer disappeared to.

The videographer shared in the caption:

“Up Slough Creek, in Yellowstone National Park, on Saturday, October 15, 2022 (the day the East Entrance Road reopened after June flood damage) the bison were stampeding off and on, so I was taking some phone video when a mule deer sprinted into the frame, pursued by a coyote.

Genius-level survival strategy on the part of the deer- run into the bison herd. Coyote abandoned the pursuit.”

Needless to say, I can imagine the relief the mule deer was feeling once it found its way into safety inside the herd of bison. Although, we seen instances in the past where the bison herd will reject the imposter, and attack themselves to keep the predator away from the herd.

Check it out:

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Young Elk Tries To Escape A Wolf And A Grizzly Bear At The Same Time

It’s hard out here for an elk…

Even in a National Park like Banff, where wildlife is so abundant, it’s not every day that you’re gonna witness an animal encounter like this. On top of that, to catch it all on video… even crazier. It might not be the best quality, and our dude is no Steven Spielberg, but amazing none the less.

It starts with a shaking video as you notice something on shore on the far side of the river. It ends up being a wolf chasing a calf elk into the river. It must have nipped it because the elk starts crying pretty hard as it gets into the water. Opting to stay dry, the wolf decides not to pursue, and he glances up at the onlookers before retreating back into the woods.

The young elk lives to fight another day… not so fast.

Just as you think the elk may have gotten away, here comes the grizzly charging into the water, making its way across the river. It ends up down stream a ways from the elk still fighting its way back to shore. As the grizzly hits land, it shows you one of the many reasons they are such an incredible animal. In a matter of seconds it ends up right were the elk touched down on shore and chases it back into the water underneath a bridge.

The bikers who are filming are completely in shock and I can’t really blame them. Imagine your morning work out going along enjoying a bike ride in the mountains and you witness a sequence of events like this? The elk comes out from under the bridge with the bear right on it tail.

“This is the most epic sh*t ever… This is planet earth.”

Not for the elk…

However, I see no lies here, it is pretty epic. This would be some type of stuff you see on Planet Earth. As the elk swims down river it gets some distance on the grizzly. Smart move young one, smart move. The elk made it safely to shore, only to find the wolf waiting for him..

Crap…

“At the end of the video the elk gains some distance but ends up on shore with wolf waiting on the train tracks and the grizzly bear eventually catching up. Not sure exactly who wins but its definitely not the elk.”

Nature can be a cruel, cruel beast.

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