Another tourist has been injured after a bison gored her at Yellowstone National Park. Photo: NPS//Jacob W. Frank
Yet another person visiting Yellowstone National Park has been injured after a bison gored her.
According to the National Park Service (NPS), the victim was an unidentified 47-year-old tourist. The woman, who was visiting the park from Phoenix, was walking with a friend on the northern shore of Lake Yellowstone when they saw two bison. They turned around to distance themselves, but one bison charged them and gored the woman.
“The woman sustained significant injuries to her chest and abdomen and was transported by helicopter to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center,” NPS said in a statement.
As of this writing, park officials hadn’t given an update on her condition, nor had they commented on how close the tourists were to the bison when it charged.
The last time a bison attacked someone at Yellowstone was in June, 2022, less than a month after another attack.
In the past few years, there have been more than a few wildlife run-ins with tourists who unwittingly (or wittingly, in some cases) got far too close to the animals in the park. Despite warnings from park officials and posted signs, the allure of a close encounter proves too much for some on too many occasions. In one case, a woman was charged after purposefully getting as close as possible to a grizzly bear and her three cubs. She was sentenced to four days in jail and had to pay a pile of fines, as well as receiving a one-year ban from the park.
The NPS advises that all tourists “stay more than 25 yards away from all large animals – bison, elk, bighorn sheep, deer, moose, and coyotes – and at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves.”
Bison can be particularly aggressive during mating season, which generally runs from about mid-July through mid-August. Even out of the rut, though, it’s a good idea stay away from any and all wild animals, whether they’re on land or in the sea.
