Tag: Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone wolves kill elk at public school outside park

The attack on a cow elk at the K-12 Gardiner School occurred at night; the wolves had vanished before dawn.

A wolf pack from Yellowstone National Park devoured a cow elk last week on a school football field outside the park.

The kill site became widely known after Jim Baldwin, superintendent at Gardiner Public Schools, shared an image showing a park ranger standing over the elk carcass. (See graphic image below.)

The Gardiner School is in the town of Gardiner at Yellowstone’s North Entrance. (Part of the school building is inside the park.)

The kill occurred after dark on April 11 and the wolves had vanished back into the park before dawn on April 12.

Elk sightings at the school, and in town, are common. But wolf sightings in the populated district are rare.

Linda Veress, a Yellowstone National Park public affairs officer, told the Billings Gazette: “It’s common for elk, bison and pronghorn to be at the school grounds, less so bears and wolves. It is very rare that we document wolves within the town’s developed footprint over the last 28 years.”

Yellowstone National Park ranger stands over the elk carcass. Photo: Jim Baldwin

The 8-Mile wolf pack, which inhabits part of the park’s northern range, is believed responsible for the elk kill, according to the Billings Gazette.

The school, alongside the Yellowstone River, is a K-12 facility that serves about 200 students.

If wolves were to show at the school during the day, it’s likely that they’d be hazed with rubber bullets and/or cracker shells.

–Generic Yellowstone wolf image courtesy of NPS / Jacob W. Frank

Watch: Tiny Yellowstone wolf pup leaves den, encounters bull elk

“At just a month old, this was likely the first time the young wolf had ever seen an animal of this size,” the tour company explained.

A tour guide in Yellowstone National Park this week captured extraordinary footage showing a tiny wolf pup emerging from a den to find itself face-to-face with a bull elk.

“At just a month old, this was likely the first time the young wolf had ever seen an animal of this size,” Yellowstone Wolf Tracker explained via Instagram. “The two shared a quick glance that seemed to make time stand still.” (See video below.)

The description continued, “This moment, although short-lived, made us onlookers ponder questions regarding what the future might hold for the young wolf.

“Would this encounter potentially shape the wolf into a fearless hunter? Are we possibly seeing the makings of a future pack leader? Only time will tell!”

The footage is grainy because it was captured, by Michael Sypniewski, through a spotting scope from a distance of 3/4 of a mile.

Leo Leckie, spokesman for Yellowstone Wolf Tracker, told FTW Outdoors that the pup belongs to the Junction Butte Pack in the park’s northern range.

The Junction Butte wolves “have become skilled bison hunters over the years,” Leckie added.

Yellowstone wolves also prey on elk, deer, and smaller mammals.

Wolf pups are born in early spring. They typically begin to emerge from dens at 10-14 days, according to the park. They stay at the den site for up to 10 weeks.

Yellowstone Wolf Tracker offers wolf-watching expeditions throughout the year.

Can you spot the Yellowstone bobcat hiding in plain sight?

Trent Sizemore encountered the elusive wildcat while leading a photography tour last week in the park’s northern range.

Bobcat sightings are rare in Yellowstone National Park, in part because the stealthy felines are mostly nocturnal but also because they’re masters of camouflage.

How easily can you spot the bobcat in Trent Sizemore’s image?

Sizemore told FTW Outdoors that the extraordinary encounter occurred last Monday during a photography workshop he led in the park’s northern range.

Can you spot the bobcat? Photo: ©Trent Sizemore Photography

“We stopped at a pullout near Lamar Valley to have lunch, when one of my clients spotted something up on the rock, and it was the bobcat watching us,” Sizemore recalled.

“This was my first one in 10 years here. We spent several hours there, seeing the cat a few more times that day. Up against the rocks, the camouflage was impeccable.”

The same bobcat in full view. Photo: ©Anne Reinhard

The image showing the bobcat less camouflaged was captured by one of Sizemore’s workshop participants, Anne Reinhard.

“[She] was off photographing birds so she missed the first sighting we had,” Sizemore said. “She got this one a bit later in the day.”

Location of the bobcat. Photo: ©Trent Sizemore Photography

The Yellowstone website states that bobcats occupy habitat throughout the park but are “rarely seen.” Most reported sightings occurred in rocky terrain near rivers.

Bobcats are in the lynx family and can weigh up to 30 pounds. They prey largely on small mammals and birds, but have been known to stalk deer and pronghorns.

Yellowstone is currently plowing roads in preparation for the spring opener, scheduled to begin April 19.

However, the road connecting the North and Northeast entrances – about 55 miles, passing through Lamar Valley – is open year-round.

Here’s why you probably shouldn’t go trail running at Yellowstone National Park

Stay safe at Yellowstone.

Some national parks are perfect for runners. A few of the parks, like Grand Teton and Joshua Tree, even host 5K, half marathon, and marathon events. Yellowstone National Park also offers runners fun races to partake in. These events include races like the Yellowstone Half Marathon and 5K and the Yellowstone 50K Trail Race.

So, if there are official races like these hosted at Yellowstone, why shouldn’t you try tail running through the park? The answer is simple: wildlife. Bears, bison, wolves, and other powerful critters may view your running as a threat or as prey behavior. This isn’t just a potential danger; people have been attacked and killed by animals within Yellowstone. In 2023, a bear attack on one of the park’s trails led to the death of marathon runner Amie Adamson.

While wildlife dangers shouldn’t keep you from enjoying Yellowstone, the park does have a few important safety tips guests should know. Outdoors enthusiasts are probably familiar with most of these rules: don’t feed the animals, keep your distance, and carry bear spray just in case.

A brown bear in the snow at Yellowstone National Park
NPS photo by Neal Herbert

“All of Yellowstone is bear country,” Yellowstone National Park’s website explains, “from the trails in the park’s backcountry to the boardwalks and parking lots around Old Faithful. Your safety cannot be guaranteed, but you can play an active role in protecting yourself and the bears people come here to enjoy.”

Additional safety tips recommended by the park include hiking with a partner or group, making noise, respecting park closures, and not leaving food sources unattended. Oh, and if you’re carrying bear spray, make sure you know how to use it. Remember, it’s not like bug spray. You do not want to spray this stuff on yourself or your gear. Instead, bear spray should be directed at an aggressive bear to keep them away and keep you safe.

Read up on more wildlife safety tips here, or explore some of the sights you can expect to see at Yellowstone here.

Can you spot the other Yellowstone critter in this spring snapshot?

Tourists who plan to visit the park after it reopens next month should expect plenty of surprises as they scour the landscape in search of wildlife.

Yellowstone National Park is plowing roads in preparation for a spring season that promises a vibrant landscape teeming with wildlife.

With this in mind I’m sharing an image I captured last spring, showing a coyote striding past tourists oblivious to its presence as they observed a cinnamon-colored black bear on the opposite side of the highway.

Can you spot the smaller critter closely watching the coyote? (Answer at the bottom of the post.)

Viewers will note the coyote’s traverse across a lush meadow bursting with wildflowers alongside a highway in the northern range.

I’ve also included images showing the cinnamon-colored black bear and a momma black bear and two cubs, which I encountered on the same afternoon a bit farther east.

Cinnamon-colored black bear and a momma black bear with cubs. Photos: ©Pete Thomas

My visit was in mid-May and I logged sightings of 14 individual bears in three days at various locations – but only the one coyote bypassing the bear jam.

By now you’ve probably spotted and identified the ground squirrel eyeing the coyote, but the critter is circled in the image posted below.

Squirrel checking out the passing predator. Photo: ©Pete Thomas

Yellowstone’s winter season recently ended and most park roads are closed. However,  plowing is underway and select roads will reopen for the spring/summer season on April 19.

–Editor’s note: A similar version of this post was published in the spring of 2023

Watch: Yellowstone coyotes ‘duke it out’ over prize buried in snow

Video footage reveals a dramatic scene involving two coyotes fighting over a bison carcass in Yellowstone National Park.

A guide leading a tour in Yellowstone National Park this week captured dramatic footage showing two coyotes battling over a presumed bison carcass buried in the snow.

The accompanying footage, captured by Yellowstone Wolf Tracker guide Michael Sypniewski, begins with one coyote launching an attack on the other coyote as it attempted to feast on the carcass.

Wolf Tracker’s description: “A couple mornings ago, Wolftracker guide @michaelwsyp and his guests watched two coyotes duke it out along the Lamar River. This intense back and forth battle went on for close to 10 minutes!”

The description continued: “Although obstructed from [the tour group’s] view, they believe the two canines were fighting over the remains of a bison carcass buried deep in the snow.”

The footage appears to show that the coyote already on the carcass was the dominant combatant.

As winter turns to spring, many of Yellowstone’s critters rely on frozen carcasses, revealed by melting snow, for sustenance.

Picture-perfect video captures Yellowstone bison in front of Old Faithful

It’s magical.

Bison are just one of the captivating animals you can spot trekking through Yellowstone National Park in the winter. If you regularly visit the park, you have probably been able to see one of the park’s beautiful bison before. But have you seen these majestic creatures posing in front of Old Faithful geyser right as it’s erupting? On Saturday, March 9, that is exactly what park visitor Cindy Shaffer caught on camera.

“That was an extremely special and tearful moment for me,” Shaffer said. “Tears of joy, of course.”

Experience the wonder for yourself in the video below. Plus, find out where you can go for a bison encounter of your own with this list of five places in the US where you can see wild bison.

Note: The featured image is a stock photo used to illustrate the story.

Wolf-poaching incident near Yellowstone under investigation

Authorities in Montana would not say how the wolf was killed or whether it might have belonged to one of Yellowstone National Park’s known packs.

Authorities in Montana are investigating a suspected wolf-poaching incident that occurred recently near Yellowstone National Park.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks stated Wednesday that the wolf was killed near Mol Heron and Cinnabar creeks northwest of Gardiner on Jan. 27.

Gardiner is just outside Yellowstone’s North Entrance.

FWP spokesman Morgan Jacobsen, citing an active investigation, did not provide details regarding how the wolf was killed or whether it had belonged to a pack that lives mostly inside the park.

“I can confirm that a wolf died likely as a result of a poaching incident a few miles north of Yellowstone National Park,” Jacobsen told FTW Outdoors. “And Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is conducting an investigation.”

The Yellowstone National Park Public Affairs Office also declined to provide details, citing the FWP investigation.

News From The States reports that the wolf was killed inside Montana’s Wolf Management Unit 313, where a hunting quota of six wolves was filled by Dec. 27.

All six wolves, as a Yellowstone National Park spokeswoman recently confirmed to FTW Outdoors, “belonged to packs that spend the majority of their lives inside Yellowstone National Park and have territories largely within the park.”

FWP is seeking help from the public as part of its investigation. Anyone with potentially helpful information is asked to visit myfwp.mt.gov/fwpPub/tipmont or call 1-800-TIP-MONT.

Informants could be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

–Generic Yellowstone wolf image courtesy of the National Park Service

Yellowstone wolves visit Old Faithful in surreal webcam footage

Members of the Wapiti wolf pack were observed strolling across the boardwalk system that winds around Old Faithful and other thermal features.

Yellowstone National Park fans who tuned into the Old Faithful webcam  Thursday morning were thrilled to see wolves strolling across the iconic thermal region.

“What a view this morning!” Yellowstone Forever exclaimed via X. “The webcam captured some incredible footage of the park’s Wapiti wolf pack making its way through the Upper Geyser Basin.”

The webcam footage – rare footage, indeed – shows several wolves on and near the basin’s sprawling boardwalk system. (See footage below.)

A 10-minute version produced by the National Park Service (posted below) shows more extensive exploration by the wolves near Old Faithful and other geysers as steam floats across the wintry landscape.

At times, the wolves are traveling on boardwalks that are crowded with tourists in spring and summer. One wolf is shown near a geyser’s vent, as if savoring its warmth.

A screen shot from the webcam footage was posted on the Yellowstone Insiders Hub Facebook page by Joe Nagel, who exclaimed: “Wolves right now on the Old Faithful webcam!”

One follower joked: “Get. On. The. Boardwalk,” in reference to a park regulation that applies only to human visitors.

Another remarked, “Well, that probably cleared the elk and bison out of the geyser basin.”

Old Faithful is in the southwest portion of the 2.2-million-acre park, which is situated in Wyoming and small portions of Montana and Idaho.

Although wolf sightings can occur anywhere inside the park, the most likely spotting destinations are across the vast northern range.

–Footage courtesy of the National Park Service

Can you spot the elk in Yellowstone guide’s striking image?

Douglas Scott, who leads hiking tours in Yellowstone National Park, assures that two elk are visible to those with a keen eye.

A hiking guide last week shared an image showing the spectacular scenery as viewed from the Specimen Ridge Trail in Yellowstone National Park.

Douglas Scott of The Outdoor Society informed his X followers that two elk are visible in the photo, which accompanies this post with Scott’s permission.

Can you spot the elk standing near one another in the image? (Answer below.)

Scott said he snapped the photo last Nov. 9 about 1.7 miles into his hike. He was on a clifftop that affords a view of the northern range between Tower-Roosevelt and Slough Creek.

Can you spot the elk? Photo: ©Douglas Scott/The Outdoor Society

The distant road leads to the Lamar Valley. The Lamar River and Slough Creek are beyond the road.

Obvious hint: Both elk are closer than the road and waterways.

Scott recalled this portion of the day hike:

“Earlier in the morning, wolves had been in the area so while giving my hiking tour on the trail above where they had been spotted, we stopped and scanned for wildlife below us, hoping to catch a glimpse of wolves bedded down for the day.

“No wolves were spotted on this adventure, but the movement of the elk caught my attention. The elk were 150 to 200 yards away, evidently unaware of our presence from above as they slowly walked.”

Yellowstone provides summer and fall range for up to 20,000 elk belonging to 6-7 herds. The stately animals are immensely popular among wildlife enthusiasts and represent a prey source for wolves, bears and mountain lions.

Elk are not masters at camouflage, but they’re not always easy to spot from a distance. The two elk visible in Scott’s image are circled below.

Photo: ©Douglas Scott/The Outdoor Society