While Yellowstone attracts millions of visitors each year for the psychedelic colors of Grand Prismatic Spring and geysers such as Old Faithful, the park that inspired the hit Paramount TV show is most famous as one of the only locations in the world where one can see the last living descendant of the North American buffalo in the wild.
The national park spanning Wyoming and small parts of Montana and Idaho is home to a herd of nearly 6,000 bison that roam the grounds freely and migrate to different areas of the park in search of food in the winter.
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‘I think it liked me, actually’: Man caught on camera teasing bison
With some male bison standing at six feet tall and weighing 2,000 pounds, park visitors who either accidentally or purposely get too close to one can run the risk of serious injury.
Last April, a 47-year-old visitor from Florida got gored by a bison while hiking through the park’s Lake Village Area, and an 83-year-old woman had earlier sustained injuries after not noticing a bison who snuck up behind her at Storm Point Trail.
While the latest visitor was apparently able to avoid injuries, an incident of somebody teasing and taunting a bison has recently been going viral after a fellow visitor filmed him and posted it on social media.
Related: National park visitor becomes first to get injured from this in 2025
The video that Brittney Matthews filmed while at the park on July 24 captures an unidentified man coming within an arm’s length of a bison and then tripping over a log in an effort to back away. According to Matthews, the man had a similar standoff with the bison a few moments earlier and decided to come up a second time to test the reaction.
“When he did not receive the response he wanted from the bison, he walked back up the hill,” Matthews said to Storyful. “He decided to try again and went back down, this time getting closer to it.”
On camera, the man is heard saying, “It was really close, man. I think it liked me, actually.”
The National Park Service (NPS) instructs visitors to keep at least 25 yards, or 23 meters, away from bison. Those who disregard this rule and touch or feed one can be fined up to $5,000 and, in some cases, even get sentenced to jail time.
Brittney Matthews posted a TikTok video of a tourist getting too close to a Yellowstone bison.
Image source: Shutterstock
‘Bison have injured more people in Yellowstone than any other animal’
In April 2024, 40-year-old Idaho visitor Clarence Yoder was caught kicking a bison near the park’s western entrance. After being treated in the hospital for injuries that occurred when the bison kicked back, Yoder was arrested for driving while intoxicated and disturbing wildlife.
More on national parks:
- The National Park Service is trying to be funny on social media
- Multiple national parks warn of similar danger
- One of the biggest crimes committed in a national park is solved
“Bison have injured more people in Yellowstone than any other animal,” the NPS page on wildlife safety reads now. “[…] If approached too closely, bison may respond by bluff charging, head bobbing while staring at you, pawing, bellowing, or snorting. These are warning signs that you are too close and that a charge is imminent — do not stand your ground! Immediately walk or run away from the animal.”
Related: National Park Service shuts down viral social media rumor