I kinda have a problem with this guy. The article does not tell the whole story of how close he was to the bison when this all started out, so it's hard to know what happened, but my first impression is the he was too close. This is a wild animal. If you cannot safely pick up your equipment and get out of there, you are too close. It says this guy was an experienced wildlife photographer??
We see this all the time in Alaska. Somebody always thinks they need to be closer, then the wild animal actually acts like a wild animal, and bad things happen.
Just within the last couple days, a woman was gored by a bison in Yellowstone, and it said that group of people got to within 15 feet of that bison!! That is ridiculous.
The park limit is 25 yards for bison. It's impossible to tell how close he was, and obviously he chooses not to specify when telling his story. But I've been hiking in Yellowstone and have had seemingly-benign bison suddenly stampede and force me and my hiking companions off a trail. They move fast enough that, even when one is stationed outside the 25 yard limit (as we were... we gave them a wide berth), that gap can close in a hurry, giving one little time to maneuver.
In the case of many of the recent gorings or other bison-related incidents that have occurred the past three years, there's no question most of the visitors involved (or other tourists who triggered the aggression) were far too close, based on eyewitness accounts. In this case I don't think there's enough info to pass judgment on the photographer.
Just remember, "if a bison's tail is raised, it's either going to charge... or discharge."
I agree, they move really fast. I remember being in the parking lot in front of the lodge at Old Faithful many, many years ago. Probably in the 70s. The parking lot was full of cars, and we were headed towards the lodge, when it seemed that bison just appeared from nowhere, in amongst the parked cars. We were surrounded by them. We just stopped moving, and waited for them to move on. Wow, they were huge. I was about ready to crawl under the biggest pickup truck I could find. The whole bunch just kept on walking, right through that parking lot. I remember thinking how much damage they could have done if they had just swung their heads and hit a window with their horns.....
Discussion
4 repliesSandy
We see this all the time in Alaska. Somebody always thinks they need to be closer, then the wild animal actually acts like a wild animal, and bad things happen.
Just within the last couple days, a woman was gored by a bison in Yellowstone, and it said that group of people got to within 15 feet of that bison!! That is ridiculous.
Sandy
https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/news/06072018.htm - woman gored by Bison in Yellowstone
In the case of many of the recent gorings or other bison-related incidents that have occurred the past three years, there's no question most of the visitors involved (or other tourists who triggered the aggression) were far too close, based on eyewitness accounts. In this case I don't think there's enough info to pass judgment on the photographer.
Just remember, "if a bison's tail is raised, it's either going to charge... or discharge."
Max