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The National Park Service (NPS) has put out a warning urging visitors to Yellowstone to keep their distance from the park’s resident population of elk amidst the start of mating season.
“Stay away from bull elk in Yellowstone, especially during fall mating season,” said park officials in a statement. “You are responsible for your own safety.”
The warning comes with good reason.
The park is home to between six to seven herds, totaling 10,000 to 20,000 elk at this time of year and the appearance of the males, known as bulls, should be enough to put you off going anywhere near them at any time, let alone the mating season.
Though pretty damn majestic – there’s a reason why they’re one of the most photographed animals in the park – they’re also about 1.5 meters (5 feet) at the shoulder and weigh roughly 318 kilograms (700 pounds), with huge antlers to boot.
Normally they aren’t super aggressive, but come mating season, they become 318 kilograms of hormones, muscle, and head weaponry that you certainly don’t want to get in the way of.
“Bull elk are unpredictable and much more aggressive during this time of year and people have been severely injured,” park officials explained. “Elk run quickly and may change direction without warning. Attacks can be unprovoked and unpredictable.”
That was demonstrated all too clearly to man who recently featured on TouronsOfYellowstone, an Instagram account dedicated to calling out reckless behavior from visitors to the park.
In the video posted, a tourist at nearby Grand Teton National Park could be seen approaching a bull elk, which then began to charge at the man, who swiftly ran off – although quickly got closer again in an attempt to take a photo.
It’s not just the males that can get aggressive either. Mating leads to cute little elk babies and during the calving season come late spring, mother elk can get fiercely protective. That became all too clear to a number of Yellowstone visitors back in 2018 who were attacked after accidentally getting too close to elk calves – one woman wound up in a trauma center with severe injuries.
How to stay safe
Park rangers have some top tips to keep safe from elk while enjoying a trip to the park:
- Always keep at least 23 meters (25 yards) or the length of two full-sized buses, from elk.
- If an elk approaches you, back away immediately.
- Look around corners before exiting buildings or walking around blind spots – elk can be found roaming about in places you wouldn’t necessarily expect.
- Don’t approach or follow elk to take pictures – use a good zoom lens instead.
If an elk does charge at you, it’s recommended to quickly find shelter in either a vehicle or behind a tall, sturdy barrier, or when shelter isn’t available, to run away.
