'There are many visitors that think that they are safe in a national park. They may think the wildlife is there for their entertainment. They may view the park as a drive-through petting zoo,' an expert said.
Earlier this month, Yellowstone released an impassioned plea in response to a rash of incidents involving wildlife. "The park calls on visitors to protect wildlife by understanding how their actions can negatively impact wildlife. Approaching wild animals can drastically affect their well-being and, in some cases, their survival."
Azzedine Downes, president of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, attributes the higher frequency of incidents to the surge of people who retreated to the outdoors during the coronavirus pandemic. At Assateague, the Pony Patrol, a roving band of volunteers, educate visitors about proper horse etiquette and distribute free straps to secure coolers. The park also provides food storage cabinets at picnic areas.
However, videos stored in the Greater Yellowstone Sights and Sounds Archive, a collection of 80,000 historical recordings housed in the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Wyoming, depict the dark side of these encounters. In several clips, Yellowstone bison chase people around a cluster of trees, a boardwalk and a car. All does not end well: A man is gored and a child is trampled.
People who approach wild animals aren't brave; they are deluded. They might convince themselves that they are neither endangering themselves nor the wildlife, and that the animals don't mind their presence - a condition that Carol Kline, director of the hospitality and tourism management program at Appalachian State University in North Carolina, calls "cognitive dissonance.
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