Watch: Bear Charges Yellowstone Park Ranger After Mauling Hiker

A Yellowstone park ranger has faced off with a grizzly bear that had already proven it had no fear of humans. In fact, the predator had already mauled a person earlier that day! The whole show down was caught on video.

Deby Dixon, a wildlife photographer, writer, and advocate of the Greater Yellowstone Eco-system, is bring attention to a concerning trend after viewing a video captured by onlookers at Yellowstone National Park. While many are amazed from the safety of their homes, Deby has a different take on the video.

On her Facebook page called “Deby’s Wild World”  Deby warns, “this is why visitors should maintain their distance from the bears. This guy meant business!”  She shared the shocking footage which featured the Yellowstone park ranger facing a charging grizzly bear.

Deby Dixon
The bear charges the ranger. (Photo Credit: Screenshot)

Deby helps contextualize the situation in the video, writing, “This boar (male bear) had been following a girl around all day, in Yellowstone, and was reported to have charged about 6 cars throughout the day when people blocked the bear’s path.” The “girl” Deby seems to be referring to was presumably a female bear, also called a sow.

“Apparently, the sow would cross the road, and then people would pull their car up in front of the boar to get photos, blocking him from reuniting with his girlfriend,” Deby continued. “As you can see, getting between a grizzly and what he wants can be bad news,” she added, and it’s easy to see exactly what she means when you watch the heart-pounding clip.

The footage shows, the park ranger outside his vehicle, attempting to direct traffic. This is when he was suddenly charged by the aggressive male grizzly bear. the grizzly appears to “possibly have been limping on its front leg” and “could explain its aggressive behavior,” according to Newsbreak.

The charging bear catches the ranger off guard, but thankfully, he is able to retreat to safety. The Ranger went behind his truck bed where he fires off some rubber bullets in self-defense. Rubber Bullets are common in dealing with wildlife like this as it scares but does little injury. After the bear retreats into the woods, the ranger reportedly uses explosive devices, possibly “bird bombs,”  to drive the bear further away with the loud noise.

Deby Dixon
The ranger first fends off the grizzly with rubber bullets. (Photo Credit: Screenshot)

Deby Dixon, after reportedly speaking with a Yellowstone bear manager about the issue, said, “Even after this boar charged the ranger, several visitors and photographers were standing along the road, watching the sow leave, despite not knowing where the boar had gone.”

Indeed, this is troubling since Yellowstone’s National Park Service makes many recommendations regarding bear safety. This includes directing visitors to “keep at least 100 yards (93 m) from bears at all times and never approach a bear to take a photo.” This is especially important if the visitor can’t safely get back to their vehicle quickly since a bear is more than capable of running you down in a hurry if he wants. You should never turn your back on or run from a bear. There are many other safety tips to observe:

 

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