Bear Watching Mayhem In Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks

Published Date

August 28, 2011

Judging from this photo (yes, that's a grizzly), and the accompanying video, is it any wonder there are bear-human conflicts in the national parks?

Editor's note: Bears in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks have been in the news a bit this summer, both because of their behavior and the behavior of tourists watching the bears. The following column, which Todd Wilkinson posted on his Wildlife Art Journal site the other day, will have you scratching your head over how there haven't been more bear-human incidents this summer.

There has been a debate raging this summer in the northern Rockies over restrictions placed on how people should be allowed to observe wildlife in national parks. Given the enormous popularity of two mother grizzly bears and cubs in Grand Teton National Park—and huge crowds gathered along the roadside—stipulations were put in place that require people to stay at least 100 yards away from bruins at all times.

What it means is that if a bear indicates that it wishes to approach the roadside or cross to the other side, people need to move. This has caused a backlash from professional wildlife photographers.

While the vast, vast majority of park visitors are well behaved, there are always defiant individuals who venture too close, throw food to wildlife or simply behave cluelessly.

Fortunately, grizzlies exhibit a high level of tolerance. In this video, passed along by Yellowstone officials, one doesn't need an active imagination to recognize what could go wrong were a bruin to suddenly act aggressively. NOTE: After you watch this video, click on the corresponding 24-second footage titled "man photographing grizzly bear mother and two cubs." The level of stupidity will take your breath away.

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Comments

Submitted by admin on September 12, 2012 - 1:07pm.

WELL, in this INCIDENT, at least SOME LAW ENFORCEMENT RANGER did not

appear to TASER the GRIZZ, Protecting the People from the Park as they like

to justify. Imagine, how many GRIZZ have been killed by the NPS over the decades

after ignoring the Craighead Brothers recommendations NOT to close the YELL DUMPS

IMMEDIATELY, food waste DUMPS, the NPS supported, with earlier FEEDING the BEARS

as Public Entertainment. Now, had this GRIZZ dared scratch an adult or child, NPS

would have been there justifying shooting the GRIZZ. This is why WILDERNESS AREAS

HELP PROTECT THREATENED/ENDANGERED SPECIES vs. the Disneyland National Park

version of petting zoos.

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