National parks are a true gift for viewing incredible feats of nature, including awesome wildlife sightings. Yellowstone National Park is a great example of this, as visitors can commonly spot anything from bison to wolves to bears.
Unfortunately, not everyone knows or respects the rules of viewing wildlife. In a viral video, tourists near the trail to the Grand Prismatic Overlook in Yellowstone were seen getting alarmingly close to a grizzly bear.
The video was shared by Trent Sizemore Photography (@trentsizemore) on Instagram on September 30.
“Reminder to carry bear spray no matter how short the trail is, or how many people you think there might be!” the user said in the caption.
An article by For The Win talked more in depth with the user, who explained that the tourists were not maintaining the 100-yard distance from predators suggested by the National Park Service.
Luckily, this bear minded its business, and the people nearby were safe. In other cases, people and wildlife are not so lucky. The obvious dangers of encroaching on animals in their natural habitat include being mauled or otherwise harmed by creatures that may be guarding their young. In other instances, an animal that interacts with humans, even if provoked, may be euthanized.
Other photographers in Yellowstone have witnessed similar sights, with one capturing tourists getting alarmingly close to a mother grizzly and her cubs. Another person was caught on video in Grand Canyon National Park attempting to pet a squirrel, putting both themself and the animal at risk for health concerns.
To show your respect for wildlife, you can view animals at a standard safe distance of 25 yards, extending it to 100 yards for predators.
By taking the extra environmental mile and educating yourself on critical climate issues, you can further help support the protection and conservation of species like grizzly bears.
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