A bison hurled an elderly Yellowstone National Park tourist high into the air late Friday after he ran from the animal, video captured.
The man had been watching the bison with his grandson from what they believed was a safe distance when it attacked. Doctors hospitalized him with serious injuries. The grandson escaped unhurt.
As of Sunday morning, the park had not issued a news release regarding the bizarre incident.
Mike MacLeod captured the footage and published it via YouTube through the Cowboy State Daily, which shows the bull bison chasing the man through trees before catching up to him.
This behavior is unusual. Yellowstone enforces a 25-yard distance rule for bison, and most physical-contact incidents happen when tourists approach bison too closely.
It’s worth noting, however, that the bison rut, or breeding season, is just beginning, and male bison can turn ornery during this period.
MacLeod, who had been camping at the Bridge Bay Campground, told the Cowboy State Daily that the bison had charged a group of children before turning its attention to the man and his grandson.
It was not clear how far they were from the bison before it began its chase, but they appeared to have been beyond 25 yards.
MacLeod described what happened when the bison caught the man:
“The bison hooked him with his left horn on his hip and tossed him in the air. He made a perfect flip and landed on his side. The bison was at least 6 feet tall, and [the man] was several feet above him.”
In late June, a 12-year-old tourist was hospitalized after a run-in with a bison.
Leave a Reply