Thursday, July 22, 2010

Respect Wildlife: When Buffalo Attack

Learn about wildlife through quiet observation. Do not disturb wildlife or plants just for a "better look". Observe wildlife from a distance so they are not scared or forced to flee. Large groups often cause more damage to the environment and can disturb wildlife so keep your group small. If you have a larger group, divide into smaller groups if possible to minimize your impacts. Learn More ( + )



FARR WEST (Utah) - A Farr West woman was charged and flipped by a bison in Yellowstone National Park. She recorded the whole encounter. Cathy Hayes was recording with a small camera Monday evening as a friend approached the lone bison at the edge of a parking lot in Biscuit Basin. You can hear Hayes say, "Getting gored by a buffalo." Of course she was joking in those seconds before the large animal started bucking and charged her friend. He fell in the parking lot injuring his shoulder, but the bison had already turned to Hayes and caught her in a small grove of trees flipping her head over heel. "I could hear him over me stomping and snorting and I just knew," Hayes said. "I knew at that second that was it. I thought this is going to be my last moment in Yellowstone Park getting tromped by a buffalo." But the bison left Hayes alone after that. Minutes later she could see and feel her knee swelling to the size of a grapefruit and the bruises began to appear on her arms and legs.

She says she has always been wary of wildlife during trips to the park, but facing down an angry bison gave her greater respect. "They say stay a hundred feet away. We were about 30, 35 feet," Hayes said. "I zoomed in on him, but that wasn't far enough because they are fast and they can turn on a dime."

4 comments:

ClimbPHX said...

I think it is very important to respect the environment of the animals we visit - whether we are simple tourists, Climbers, Hikers, Back Packers or Canyoneering.
Animals act unexpectedly when cornered as shown here... Leave No Trace employs techniques above and beyond simple trash maintenance and waste disposal. Some of the effects that we have on nature are not always material
Shiloh
Climbphx.com

Winded Bowhunter said...

The other point to note is that at the :27 mark, you see the object that appears to be a stick hit the bison! Not only should you keep your distance in their natural habitat and calm state. You should not "tick it off" by throwing projectiles at them.

Adam R. Cox said...

I worked in Yellowston and the Tetons in the 80s. People who do this are not the smartest. If you look at the video you will see that someone threw something at the buffalo to aggitate it. It's just so wrong.

Zuzana said...

Generally I do not post on blogs, but I would like to say that this blog really forced me to do so! Thanks, really nice article.


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