A photographer filmed a crowd of Yellowstone Park tourists blocking a grizzly bear from crossing a road so that they could take photos of the animal.
In a clip shared to Instagram on Monday, wildlife photographer and naturalist guide Kyle Moon showed how a crowd of visitors cornered a grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park — just to film videos and take photos of the animal.
In the footage, the grizzly bear is seen trying to cross the road. However, the crowd of tourists cut off the animal’s path through the park.
According to Moon, who captured the video through his spotting scope on August 10, the grizzly bear went back and forth numerous times to flee the crowd and cross the road. However, the animal had nowhere to go as tourists had lined the side of the road to get a photo of it.
“The bear kept walking up and down the shore there looking for a place to cross, but there were too many people and cars further deterring the bear from crossing,” Moon, who is based in Gardiner, Montana, tells PetaPixel.
“The bear ended up going into the river and just walking around aimlessly. It then tried to come back to cross the road again, but you could tell it was uncomfortable.
“The bear finally crossed the river to the other side and went into the forest and disappeared. As the bear was crossing the river during the second time, a ranger showed up and he diffused the situation.”
Moon says it has become increasingly common to see tourists not keeping their distance from animals in Yellowstone Park so that they can take photos.
“I don’t want to speak for everyone regarding visitors ignoring rules, but I will say I see many violations a day; some serious, some not,” the photographer says.
“This situation was evident that it was a pretty serious one. These tourists were way too close — well within 100 yards — and the bear’s behavior was clearly altered by the humans’ presence.”
‘Give Them Room, Use Your Zoom’
Yellowstone National Park guidelines mandate that tourists and photographers stay at least 100 yards from bears and wolves for their own safety as well as the animals.
In cases where that might not be possible, visitors are required to exercise enough common sense to create a safe environment for themselves and the animals.
Moon hopes that the footage will encourage people to maintain a safe distance from wildlife in Yellowstone Park.
“I hope this raises some awareness on some of the issues we’re having in the park,” Moon explains.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if some are actually clueless about what is acceptable in this situation, but I fear that some people just simply don’t care and they feel entitled to do as they please. That mentality is a problem and needs to be addressed.”
There have been several cases of tourists and photographers getting too close to the animals in Yellowstone National Park.
In May, a Yellowstone National Park guide filmed a photographer who refused to move away as a grizzly bear and her cubs crossed a highway. In the footage, a photographer with a tripod is filmed mere yards from a grizzly bear mom as she attempts to lead her yearling cubs across the road.
Earlier this month, Yellowstone Park officials warned photographers and tourists to stay away from elk during the mating season and to use zoom when taking pictures of the animals. “Give them room, use your zoom,” the National Park Service (NPS) advised in a press release.
More of Moon’s work can be seen on Instagram, Facebook, or his website.
Image credits: All photos by Kyle Moon/ Moon Man Photography.