This younger elk in Yellowstone National Park evidently thought it was time to challenge its older, much larger bull elk rival. Video evidence suggests it immediately regretted that decision.
The “antler clashing season” should be winding down right about now. The more formal way to describe the time of the year is “the rut,” and if you aren’t familiar with rutting, it’s when bull elk become more aggressive and vocal. That usually occurs from September to November, and it’s during that time when elk are known to “act up” to establish dominance, claim territories, and in hopes of securing a female mate.
We’re on the back half of that period now, but there are still plenty of elk out in the wild that are looking to fight… especially this younger bull in the video below out of Yellowstone National Park.
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.
Richard Scott Fletcher, a resident of Montana, recently took to social media to share a video he got of two elk squaring up right beside a picnic table. It sounds like he was shooting the footage from inside a building or car, which is good news. Though this isn’t the most violent fight we’ve ever seen, you never want to get too close to a wild animal… especially if they are locked in battle.
The National Park Service advises park visitors to stay 25 yards away from animals that are deemed “non-violent,” like bison, elk, and other creatures that tend to be relatively docile. When it comes to bears, wolves, and other apex predators, the NPS warns park goers to keep a football-field-distance between them and the animals.
So Fletcher was doing the right thing by keeping his distance, and honestly, I bet he hoped he was going to witness a more exciting face-off. He instead got more of a slow-motion fight full of hesitation, and I don’t blame the younger bull for not being 100% committed to the altercation.
Here’s the commentary that Fletcher provided over the video… it appears that the younger animal had just been tagged prior to this quarrel:
“This is 24, and they just tagged that young one (as) 25. So 24 and 25 are having a little tussle.”
Yeah… the winner is undoubtedly No. 24. Something tells me that young bull (No. 25) immediately regretted getting into that skirmish, but didn’t want to abandon it altogether.
These elk aren’t exactly evenly matched, and the larger antlered-animal looks much more comfortable in the heat of battle than the youngling. Fully-grown elk typically stand 4 to 5 feet tall and weigh anywhere between 700 and 1,100 pounds. As you can see, only one of the elk in the video above looks to be around that size.
No. 25 still has some growing up to do… in every sense of the word.
