A video of tourists approaching an elk with their phones has viewers shocked due to the visitors’ lack of awareness.
The clip, posted by Tourons of National Parks (@touronsofnationalparks), was posted to Instagram. It appears to be taken at Yellowstone National Park and shows visitors getting close to a large elk with mighty horns.
“Every elk deserves hazard pay for dealing with tourists,” the account wrote in its caption.
The video was taken during rut season, which is the time of fall when the elk mate. The animals are particularly aggressive at this time, according to the National Park Service. They challenge fellow bulls in order to attract cows. If a human gets too close during this time, the animal might mistake them for competition and charge.
Park rangers urge visitors to keep at least 50 yards away from these elk, which can reach up to 1,000 pounds. The tourists in the video are far closer than is safe, so it’s fortunate that no one was hurt.
While national parks allow people to see the natural world up close, many don’t follow guidelines on how to interact with native wildlife. As a result, people and animals can both get caught in dangerous situations. This is a great example of the importance of educating ourselves on critical climate issues.
Humans can get injured if they provoke an animal, which often leads to the creature getting euthanized. When they add up, these interactions can lead to population decline among native species, which disrupts the local environment.
Biodiversity is a critical safeguard against the detrimental effects of warming temperatures, including unstable food supplies, poor air quality, and more.
Viewers on Instagram were surprised by the nonchalance among Yellowstone visitors. Many remarked on how the tourists likely did not understand how dangerous the creature near them actually was.
“So sad they don’t know how much danger they are in,” one person wrote.
“They’re very lucky he didn’t decide to hop that fence. Poor elk,” another said.
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