A kid in Yellowstone National Park was recently in the sights of an angry bison… and barely escaped the creature when it started charging.
Unfortunately, there’s an epidemic that hits Yellowstone every summer… and it seemingly only affects individuals who don’t have enough common sense to give wildlife personal space. We see it time and time (and time) again, and the latest example of tourists getting way too close for comfort to an animal involves a child.
Obviously, that’s very scary and immensely reckless, especially during this time of the year, which is known as “Bison Rutting Season.”
The National Park Service advises tourists to stay 25 yards away from animals that are deemed “non-violent.” That list includes bison, elk, and other creatures that tend to be relatively docile – though docile is a relative term. When it comes to bears, wolves, and other apex predators, the NPS warns park goers to keep 100-yards between them and the animals.
Maybe they should just go ahead and stretch that number out to 100-yards for every animal, eh? I’m just saying that because we get far too many press releases from Yellowstone National Park explaining how a somehow unaware tourist dangerously approached a wild animal inside the park, then proceeded to pay the price.
None worse than when a grandpa named Carl got gored and thrown into the air like a ragdoll earlier this summer.
In this video, it looks like a parent or guardian of some sort is standing right next to the kid on the boardwalk at Yellowstone, right after they walked up to it (much closer than the 25 yard buffer zone that’s suggested). Sure enough, once they got too close, the bison let them know.
The kid went running on the boardwalk, and the bison charged… all while the adult stood still and watched it all happen. Safe to say the “Parent of the Year” award is not gonna go to them:
“A bison was seen chasing after a child in a heart-stopping moment that was witnessed by Yellowstone National Park visitors after a group got close to the wild animal.”
That kid is lucky that bison pulled up and abandoned the chase. Running near an animal often times triggers its chase instinct, and it appears that happened for just a moment before the 2,000-pound beast gave up.
When you factor in that it’s bison rutting season, everyone in this video is very fortunate to have avoided the bison attack. The national park put out a statement a couple of weeks ago encouraging tourists to use “extra caution” while walking near bison, who are about to enter into the rutting season”
“Use extra caution this time of year – the bison rut is beginning! You may see mature male bison with their mouths open, tongues out, and upper lips pulled back. This is how bull bison sniff pheromones and determine whether a female is ready to breed. Bulls will also display their dominance by bellowing, wallowing, and engaging in fights with other bulls.
The winners earn the right to mate with receptive females. Bison are wild and unpredictable, no matter how docile they may appear to be. Be sure to always maintain a distance of at least 25 yards (23 meters) from them, and if a bison charges, retreat!”
I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t call walking right up to a bison at Yellowstone “using extra caution.”
