Even when they are grazing on the side of the road, elk deserve to have some space. They are big animals with a lot of power behind them, and can gore people with their antlers. However, when they are easily accessible, people get a little overly excited when they see these majestic creatures, often getting too close. While the National Parks Service recommends visitors give our antlered friends at least 25 yards, recent visitors to one of our magnificent parks got quite a bit closer, testing a bull elks patience. A video of the encounter was shared to the infamous Instagram account, the Tourons of Yellowstone, which is notorious for posting videos of park visitors misbehaving or testing wildlife's boundaries.
Nosy park visitors descend upon park wildlife with cameras at the ready, eliciting a variety of responses from animals. Some elk ignore them, while others get mildly annoyed at the constant presence of humans. However, this particular elk seems out of patience.
In the video, you can see some elk eating in a field next to the roadway. Cars are pulled over on either side, with people on foot trying to get a better view. Some park visitors stay in their vehicles while observing, but a handful of people with telescope-lensed cameras decide they must be right next to the elk to get that perfect shot. As expected, one bull elk reached his limit between the cars boxing him in and the people flanking his left side.
Head down and antlers forward, he charged at one of the cars parked on the side of the road. The car quickly pulled away, rejoining passing traffic, and the camera-slinging park visitors ran for the road. Once the car was gone, the elk stopped his charge and stood on the road's edge, almost daring people to enter his bubble.
Most tourists crossed the road to their vehicles parked on the other side. Viewers of the Instagram post were less than thrilled with the park visitors' lack of respect for the elk and his personal space and desperately want to see videos like these happen less.
One commenter said, "Identify the culprits and fine them. Also, community service for 45 days. That should get the message across to follow the rules and regulations." That's a sentiment that was echoed by many. Luckily for the tourists on foot, the elk picked the car to charge at, not them.
