That’s an impressive bachelor herd right there.
We’re currently in the middle of the most wonderful time of the year (in case you didn’t get the memo). That means snow is likely in the forecast for many of the colder climates, and I don’t know about you, but I love nothing more than to look over a nature scene that’s blanketed in thick, white snowfall.
So I really enjoyed this video out of Yellowstone National Park showing a herd of bull elk dashing through the snow.
It’s estimated that the population of elk in Yellowstone fluctuates between 10,000 and 20,000, depending on conditions and the time of the year. The animals are an incredibly important part of the national park’s ecosystem, and one of the many animals that visitors flock to see every single year.
Nate Udd, the wildlife artist and guide based in Montana, is a frequent visitor of Yellowstone National Park, and was in the right place at the right time to see this herd of sizable bull elk running together. He referred to the encounter as the “running of the bulls,” and got a video of what he called the coolest moment of his day.
Considering he apparently saw packs of wolves and some towering bull moose in the same period of time, the wildlife enthusiast was really impressed by these beasts showing off their ability to handle the snowy terrain of Yellowstone this time of year. The snow certainly wasn’t slowing this elk herd down, as you can see in the video below, which was captioned:
“Cool little encounter with a bachelor herd of elk the other morning. We saw two packs of wolves, three bull moose and the other usual suspects. But for me this was the coolest sighting of the day. I’ve never seen a group of bulls running out in the open in that exact spot before, and the encounter was just one of many examples of how every single day out here is different.
You never know what’s around the next bend. They’re such graceful and powerful animals. I could hear their hooves rumbling on the ground as they moved across the landscape like water, off towards the shelter of the dark timber.”
I’ll be honest… I could have used a different song there overlaid on the video instead of Drake’s “Hotline Bling.” Maybe “Movin’ On” by Merle Haggard? Or “Midnight Run” by James Hand/Charley Crockett?
I’m not gonna be a stickler about the music choice though. How could I when the video is so majestic? When I’m out and about driving, I never get held up on the road by something as beautiful as this. For me, it’s always because a group of cars can’t figure out how to merge on the interstate, or one slow driver holding up everyone else on the highway.
Only in my wildest dreams does traffic get caused by a herd of elk running amuck in a snowy landscape. That’s the kind of traffic that I could get used to…
Grizzly Bear Charges Into Elk Herd At Yellowstone National Park
This looks like a grizzly bear’s happy place… elk as far as the eye can see.
Elk are a gregarious animal, meaning they love to herd up during certain times of the year, and during winter months especially, many of them end up in large herds.
One of the most obvious benefits of herding is protection from predators partly for strength in numbers, but also, you don’t necessarily have to outrun the predator, you just have to outrun the slowest members of the herd.
As far as diet goes, grizzly bears love members of the deer family. Moose, deer and elk are some of their favorite prey as they are large enough to provide a few great meals and not to mention… they taste great. A young calf or fawn doesn’t really put up much of a fight at all, so grizzly bears have a massive competitive advantage, and generally, can take out an elk with ease as long as they can get close enough.
This grizzly is seen running towards a large herd of elk, and in a strategic defensive maneuver, the group moves as a single unit. It also just looks cool… I mean, despite the fact that this bear is hoping to eat one of the elk in the herd, it’s just visually pleasing seeing the herd run as the grizz approaches. It almost looks as if the bear is a sheep dog and the elk are sheep as they move together after each step the bear takes.
The grizzly eventually chases them all off, and we can’t say for sure that he got one. If I was a betting man, I would bet that he went home with a full belly that night, just given how many there were, but who really knows?
All we do know is that it is a TOUGH world out there for these animals.
Kid Calmly Walks Away From A Bear
Imagine wandering through the Italian country side, just you and your pops looking for pine cones, and out of nowhere a giant bear sticks out its giant head, with its giant teeth, right out of the bushes.
Not sure how they say it in Italy, but we like to say it like this… “you’re screwed.”
Unless you’re the calmest 12-year-old on planet Earth…
I nearly shit my pants just watching this from the comfort and safety of my own home, meanwhile this little dude with ice water in his veins very calmly walks back over to dad, hungry bear following him every step of the way, and acts like nothing happened.
Like he didn’t just wriggle out of the jaws of a very certain death…
And you’re an idiot like me and thought to yourself, “they have bears in Italy?” I did you a favor and looked it up, and yes, according to the trusty Wikipedia, the brown bear population of the Italian Alps was nearly wiped out in the ’90s, however thanks to conservation efforts, the population has slowly began to creep back up.
Wild.
Skier Stays Calm During Close Encounter With Bear
Alright, I’m starting to have some mixed emotions about bears now.
A few weeks ago, we posted a video of a bear mauling a ginormous moose… and now, I’m back to thinking that bears kinda cute, you know, when they’re not pulling a moose apart with their teeth.
A skier in Predeal, Romania, was recently capturing some footage on the slopes, when a bear comes trotting up towards them. The bear makes its way to the top with the skiers, and it looks like it’s just having a good time, evening laying down a few times. Maybe he’s just trying to sun-bathe a little bit after kickin’ it in snowy woods all day.
But after a few minutes of recording, the skier begins to make his way down the slope and the next thing you know, the bear starts CHASING after him full-speed. Maybe he was just playing around, or maybe he was wanting to rip the skier’s face off, who really knows, right? But what I do know is that I sure as hell wouldn’t be laughing the whole time like the skier was.
Like dude, you are WAY to calm about a bear being that close to you. Granted, he’s not a huge bear, but look at those claws and tell me he still couldn’t tear your heart out.
Eventually, the bear has gives up chasing the skier, but just based on the tone of his voice, this dude wasn’t worried about it AT ALL.
