This guy had seen enough stuff as a newscaster to know that you don’t mess with the wildlife at Yellowstone National Park.
Not much good came out of the year 2020 (that’s an understatement), but one thing that did happen that managed to lighten things up was this man’s genuine reaction that was caught on camera and went viral.
Deion Broxton was out in the field (specifically Yellowstone) to cover a story for NBC Montana, and in the times of the pandemic where you had to “keep your distance,” it appears that this guy was covering the remote shoot on his own.
Certainly you’ve seen this video before and you are just stopping in for another good laugh. If you haven’t seen it before (lucky you), prepare to be amazed by Broxton’s “no nonsense instincts” that kick in while the camera is rolling.
Deion is about to start the shoot when he spots a bison breaking away from its herd and heading his way, and as he hilariously side-eyes it, he gives some of the best comedic commentary you’ll ever hear:
“Montana 3… oh my God, oh my God. Oh, nope I ain’t messing with you. Oh, no. Oh, no.”
After quickly looking back and forth between the camera lens and the incoming bison, Broxton walks out of the shot and you can hear him taking the camera off the mount and beginning to load it up.
The camera continues to roll, catching his panic as he tries to get the hell out of dodge:
“Oh no, I’m not messing with you. Hmmm mhm.”
The bulky camera clanks into the back seat of the vehicle and shuts off, and Deion then gets into the safety of the vehicle. When he eventually was looking back at the footage, he thought the interaction was too good not to share, even though you never see the bison that is making a beeline towards him.
Once it was posted on social media, the clip garnered millions upon millions of views, giving Deion his “15-minutes of fame” and a lifetime of interactions with strangers asking him “aren’t you that bison guy?”
Take a look:
Broxton was there at Yellowstone National Park to talk about its closure during COVID, and apparently the bison roaming the park were enforcing that closure.
He had reportedly covered around 20 stories already at the national park before this, but this one happened to be the news station’s “lightning in a bottle” moment.
The Baltimore native took some time shortly after the event to speak with a news station from his hometown and describe more about how the bison encounter (or lack thereof) went down:
“They started moving towards me, and the one that was closest to me made eye contact with me and he didn’t stop walking towards me. The other ones were all kind of moving in a group.
I’ve covered stories in Yellowstone where the girl was tossed last year, the man went viral two years ago for taunting the bison and the bison charged at him, so all that stuff was playing through my mind.
I’m not trying to be on the news (with the headline) ‘Only Black Man in Montana Killed by Bison.'”
Broxton clearly handled the whole situation with class, and was able to laugh at himself, which is one of the more difficult things to do in this day and age. The viral video that spawned from his natural reaction of a wild animal stalking him brought a light to many, as he also revealed in the interview:
“One lady emailed me, she said ‘this is the first time I’ve laughed in 5 days.”
And let this be a lesson to all those Yellowstone National Park visitors: you don’t have to be an idiot around the wildlife to go viral. Being smart can pay off too.
The additional story and interview can be seen below:
Massive Bison Stampede Halts Traffic At Yellowstone National Park
I could watch videos like this for hours.
I’ll admit, Yellowstone the show has peaked my interest in Yellowstone the National Park.
Sure, it has its natural beauty and Old Faithful, but I’m more concerned with the wildlife. Grizzly bears, elk, wolves, moose and of course bison can all be found roaming the park and you’re always guaranteed to see something cool, if you know where to look.
And sometimes, you don’t even have to look. You can just be driving down the road…
A few years back, park visitors happened to be driving down the Lamar Valley Bridge when an incredible bison stampede came racing across the field and down the road.
An incredible and yet, kind of frightening scene to witness… the herd just seems to go on forever.
Unfortunately, Yellowstone is underwater right now so your next visit might have to wait, but definitely make a point to get out there as soon as you can.
If you love wildlife, it’s just a magical place.
Bison Herd Protect Calf From Pack Of Wolves
Another day, another episode of cool shit at Yellowstone.
Captured by Yellowstone guide, wolf tracker, and photographer Michelle Holihan, this awesome footage features the Junction Butte Pack trying to take down a bison calf.
Only problem is, mama and papa bison had other ideas.
“We had an exciting morning of wolf watching in Yellowstone today as several members of the Junction Butte Pack tried to take down a bison calf.
After the adults ran them off they gave up the chase and went back to the rest of the pack.”
Watching wolves hunt might be one of the coolest wildlife experiences you can encounter, and Yellowstone might be the best place to do it.
So methodical, so organized… sure they rely on speed and power, but they also rely on executing the perfect attack plan. Unfortunately for these two wolves, they were outmanned and undersized against the defenses of the herd.
The best defense is a good offense?
Not in Yellowstone it’s not…
Coyote Attacks A Bald Eagle To Win A Carcass At Yellowstone National Park
Survival of the fittest.
Yellowstone National Park is one of the snowiest places in all of America, as it gets around 150 inches of snow on average, and can reach up to 200 to 400 the higher the elevation, according to Yellowstone National Park Lodges.
With that being said, food can be few and far between for the wildlife that remains in the park during the snowy months, and as we’ve seen before, many creatures have to fight for their food in order to survive.
In this video, you can see a few bald eagles taking what is left of a carcass at Yellowstone. Although the bald eagle normally feeds off fish, they are forced to make due with what they can get in the winter, as the ponds are frozen over.
It appears for a bit that the bald eagles have the carcass all to themselves, when out of nowhere, a coyote can be seen lurking in the distance.
Once the coyote realizes that the coast is clear of any wolves, he makes his move on the bald eagles in an effort to obtain the carcass all for himself.
He runs in and lunges at the remaining bald eagle, and although the eagle makes an effort to stand its ground with its talons, the coyote is victorious in the end, and the eagle is forced to onlook from a distance.
“Yellowstone is one of the snowiest places in America and, as winter progresses, it rapidly transforms into a wonderland.
But for Yellowstone’s wildlife, it’s a finely balanced fight for survival as bald eagles and a coyote fight over a carcass.”
Check it out:
