The National Park Service on Sunday reminded tourists, in a bizarre way, that Yellowstone National Park’s bison are dangerous and need to be afforded a wide berth.
In West Yellowstone I was born and raised
On the valley floor is where I spent most of my days
That’s right, the NPS announcement is a manipulation of theme-song lyrics from “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” a 1990s sitcom starring Will Smith.
Wallowin’, grunting, relaxing all cool
Eating lots of grasses, that’s right no bull
When a couple of humans who were up to no good
Started making trouble in the bison neighborhood…
Yellowstone is home to more than 5,000 bison. The iconic beasts can weigh as much as 2,000 pounds and run 30 mph.
While they appear docile when standing near a road, they do not appreciate being crowded by tourists and every year a handful of park visitors are gored or tossed by angry bison. (Or, in keeping with the theme, their lives “got flipped turned upside down.”)
The public service announcement concludes:
Mama said, ‘You’re movin’ with the herd, you need more space and fresh air.’
Yellowstone National Park shared the NPS Facebook post Monday under the description:
“Reminder: Bison need a lot of fresh air and space. Approaching bison threatens them, and they may respond by charging. Always stay at least 25 yards (23 m) away from bison.”
–Bison images courtesy of NPS
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