If you need a reminder of why you should avoid getting close to giant wild animals when enjoying the great outdoors, a recent video from Yellowstone National Park might jog your memory.
A video shot by Adela Gonzalez on Wednesday captured the moment a Yellowstone tourist discovered just how fast wild bison could run and learned this lesson the hard way.
Gonzalez told the news service Storyful that he was vacationing at the park with his family when he noticed a herd of bison walking near the sidewalk. Keeping her safe distance, Gonzalez used her cellphone camera to zoom in and photograph the herd, she said, as intrepid tourists approached the herd.
“I noticed tourists getting very close to the bison,” she told Storyful.
The video shows a herd of about eight bison shuffling down a path, passing a man who appears to be sitting motionless on a bench.
As the bison slowly continue to cross the path and return to the grass, we see another group approach the herd and decide to cross just a few feet in front of them.
“I don’t think that’s wise,” the woman is heard saying, before the bison begins to feel a little claustrophobic and moves to charge the herd.
“The herd of bison started getting excited and started running,” Gonzalez told Storyful.
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Sure enough, the bison in the video picked up its pace and started charging towards the tourists, who quickly noticed and started running away. A group can be seen chasing a bison as it is chased out of the way.
“Oh my god… oh no! Don’t run! Holy cats! Oh my god! They’ve got zoomy-zooms!” a woman says as she watches the chase in the background.
Fortunately, the visitors were able to get out of the way in time, and the bison were free to continue on their desired path.
“I hope they’re okay,” the voice behind the camera says.
Fortunately, everyone was safe, Gonzalez said. There were no injuries from the encounter.
National Park Service says not to approach animals
As with other wildlife in the park, the National Park Service advises visitors to never approach bison and to observe the protected animals from a distance.
Bison are the largest land mammals in North America, with males weighing up to 2,000 pounds and females about 1,000 pounds, the organization said. It’s also agile, capable of running up to 35 miles per hour, “faster than you,” the NPS notes.
“Seemingly docile mammals such as bison and elk account for the majority of wildlife-human encounters. Visitors and wildlife can be injured, and these encounters are sometimes fatal.” NPS advises. “Please protect these wild animals and avoid dangerous encounters by keeping your distance. For their safety and yours, stay at least 25 yards away from all wild animals.”
To drive home this point, an NPS webpage dedicated to Yellowstone includes several videos of bison encounters gone awry. One such clip of his shows a “bison charging through West Thumb” where a group of tourists surrounding the bison are horrified when the bison uses its powers. Powerful horns and heads launch men’s legs into the air amidst a chorus of screams.
“Bison may seem harmless and slow, but they can be extremely dangerous and fast. This video shows what happens when you get too close,” the caption reads.
