man walks too near bull elk in Colorado... man had been warned

[Demovictory9]

Elk not shown proper respect, knocks man over wall

A man who walked within feet of a bull elk as the animal stood guard over its harem was toppled by the animal in a scary incident captured on video.

The accompanying footage, captured by Eric Burley in the northern Colorado town of Estes Park, shows the elk flipping the man head over heels after a series of warnings issued by Burley.

Burley, who lives in Denver, said the man was not seriously injured. The footage shows passersby helping him to his feet, placing themselves in danger.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/tripideas/watch-elk-not-shown-proper-respect-knocks-man-over-wall/ar-AAQng5O?ocid=msedgntp






'The two male elks made eye contact and started showing teeth,' Burley told FTW Outdoors. 'That's when I knew to clear a path between the two and let mother nature take its course.'

But other tourist in the area did not take the hint to clear out and one passerby even ignored Burley's clear warning to get out of the way.


Burley captured the moment he tells a man in a Navy Blue puffer casually walking dangerously close a roaming elk 'Sir, watch out, watch out!'

Thankfully the man was not injured in the attack, Burley said, footage shows him getting up quickly and motioning to those around him that he was okay

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10172287/Colorado-man-tossed-wall-angry-elk-ignoring-warning-bystander-stay-away.html

[hlthe2b]

1. If it had been worse, that a'hole risked not only himself & others, but forcing the elk to be

relocated (at a minimum) or even sacrificed. I want people that do this kind of thing to face very serious charges. It is damned infuriating.

[SheltieLover]

6. I couldn't agree more!

[2naSalit]

15. Heh...

You think this is something, you should see the fucking imbeciles in Yellowstone NP every day of the year. The north end of the park is open all year and lots of elk hang out around Mammoth HS and people usually get pissed if you try to warn them for their own safety even if you're the Ranger whose job it is to keep people away from the animals. They just flip you off and do it anyway because they know two things: they know that no LEO will be showing up any time soon and they know they can complain about you in writing and fuck you over and possibly lose your job. When complaints come in, your supervisor will not stand up for you at inquiry. When you have to make verbal contact with thousands of "visitors" a day, the odds that some jerk is going to try and get you fired are immense.

It's almost like they are really that ignorant or are purposely trying to get hurt so they can sue. I can't tell which it is but it has to be one of those.

[Traildogbob]

17. I hear you

Many of my Graduates in Natural Resources took Ranger positions in State and federal agencies. Managing the plant and animal communities was easy. Dealing with humans stupidity/arrogance was a nightmare. We always talk about writing a book of the stupid and insane questions asked. But approaching wild Elk in rutting season with a baby on your hip for a picture with signage everywhere is child abuse, and every fall we face that in GSMNP. I really wish we had more man eating predictors here in the East to thin out the stupid in backcountry. I know you pain.

[2naSalit]

18. It's true in all the parks anymore...

That self appointed entitlement to screw up anything in the name of personal freedom is one of the many reason why we can't have nice things.

[doc03]

2. People think they are in a petting zoo, I saw a tourist get about 8 feet from a bull

bison rolling in the dust to take a picture could have been his last. I saw a tourist go off the boardwalk
at Old Faithful and walk across the crust that has boiling water under it to take a picture right at the
mouth of the thing. There is a sign there to stay on the walkway in several languages I guess he couldn't
read it or was just plain dumb.

[samnsara]

10. i have a deer feeder on my property and when i take grain out, i dont even make eye contact..

..most are white tail does with their fawns. If I see a buck out there.. even a spike.. I wont go all the way to the feeder. I will pour a few piles of grain on the gravel and get back inside....always watching over my shoulder.

[2naSalit]

19. Why are you feeding them?

Seriously, why are you feeding wildlife?

[BlackSkimmer]

30. Never mind the fact that deer corn is bad for deer.

Only one reason to feed deer on your property and we all know what that reason is.

[2naSalit]

33. Yup.

It's called HABITUATION.

As a former NPS and USDAFS wildlife person, this sort of activity just pisses me off. Feeding wildlife is as wrong as trying to pet and ride them.

In one of the communities I used to live in, there was a hefty fine for feeding wildlife, leaving bird feeders out or not placing your trash in an appropriate receptacle.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

3. My brother ACCIDENTALLY walked right next to an elk at night when he lived in Colorado.

He walked outside of some ski lodging to get away and look up at the clear and Moon-less sky. He said that he could barely see his own hand in front of his face, which seemed to me like a really dumb thing to do in a mountainous area.

Then his heart was racing because whatever he'd been standing beside for a few minutes, when he was motionless, finally decided to run away and the ground near him shook from the heavy thumps of it's hooves. He assumed it was an elk, but he didn't know with certainty because he never saw it.

[SheltieLover]

4. Some people just refuse to respect other species

Infuriating, especially since others could have been injured & if there had been serious injuries, this magnificant Elk would pay the price with his life!

That said, this would make a great PSA! And I hope this guy is sufficiently shamed that he never does this again!

[2naSalit]

20. +1

Sadly, many think a PSA like you suggest is something they'd watch and say, "Wow, cool!" laugh and give it a try themselves because, as everyone knows, they are cool enough to do the same thing and not get hurt.

There is a social media fad where people go to the wildlife parks and take out their cellphones and take selfies with the caption, "Look what I got away with" and then challenge the viewers to try something more ignorant for entertainment.

[Paladin]

5. That dumbass got off easy. (nt)

[paleotn]

7. Stupid, arrogant human.

I despair the species.

[Hortensis]

21. :) Really? Could he just have happily assumed a public park

with a bunch of people out enjoying themselves and elk strolling around among them was a safe place? Not his smartest moment, of course. I hope.

[paleotn]

23. Surviving member of the Pleistocene megafauna....

on his Fall testosterone binge. Enter a foolishly, arrogant hominin armed only with his stylish puffy jacket. What could possibly go wrong?

Ancient Homo sapiens...."Oh, dear god, you did NOT do that."

Homo neanderthalensis..."What wonderful progeny you've got there, smart boy. Good job. Sapien extinction in 3..2..1.."

Homo erectus..."Yea. Even I've got more brains than THAT!"

[Hortensis]

28. Lol. Well, have to admit that erectus always

comes across to me as intrinsically arrogant. But way often it's just, or also, the epitome of mindless stupidity.

[North Shore Chicago]

8. A really dumb man.

Humans take so much from wildlife, please give them an inch! They will not take a mile.

[COL Mustard]

12. Well, Raccoons Will.

They'll do just about anything people will do, except drive our cars. And give them 25 years or so, they might be doing that!

[North Shore Chicago]

13. I wouldn't mind

being chauffeured by a raccoon. They will need booster seats.

[Hortensis]

25. Lol. It's looking like deer will inherit our own little piece of earth.

Here in the eastern U.S., the current pattern of creating a mixture of open areas and woodlands, outside of dense urban areas, of course, has been increasing the area deer like to live in.

That's certainly the case on our little hill, where a mix of pasture and glades in and surrounded by woodland is very popular.

[samnsara]

9. i had one stand in the middle of the road as i drove to work..i sat there.. he sat there..

...i didnt make eye contact. Finally, thankfully, it wandered away.

[COL Mustard]

11. Dude, That Bull Elk Has One Thing On His Mind

And you ain't it.

I like the way he looks at the cameraman as if to say "you want a piece of me too?".

Give them room.

[Danascot]

14. A few weeks ago

There was a story out of Yellowstone where a ranger moved his truck between a bull elk and a bunch of tourists that were getting too close. The elk charged the truck and opened up the side like a can opener. Had it been a human instead it would be a serious injury. At that time the elk were in rut so the males are more aggressive and have a shorter fuse than normal. I don't know if they are still in rut or if the season is over.

[Hortensis]

26. Deer mating season's begun here in No GA. We only see one male,

but we wouldn't try to get near him.

We're looking forward to the new little sets of fawns next year. At least one mom will bring them while small to a lawn our porch overhangs to play and nap in the sun.

[lastlib]

16. Years ago, in New Mexico, I had occasion to get within five feet of a mountain goat....

...in the wild. That dude could've launched me into Arizona if he chose to, but he was pretty passive and just walked away. As he walked off, I rolled an apple to him, and he stopped and ate it, then went on his way. It was a cool experience, but I know it was very dangerous, and I wouldn't do it again.

[DavidDvorkin]

22. The elk have long treated that lawn in Estes Park as their own

You can drive around the spot and look at them, and that's all sensible people do.

[madville]

24. That was pretty weak

I was thinking something like a rodeo, looked pretty mild.

[Hekate]

29. Seriously? Re-read post 14

14. A few weeks ago
There was a story out of Yellowstone where a ranger moved his truck between a bull elk and a bunch of tourists that were getting too close. The elk charged the truck and opened up the side like a can opener.

[Danascot]

31. Here's some coverage of that incident

As people ran toward the sounds of the bulls, rangers struggled to keep them safely away from the animals that can run at 40 miles an hour. Another ranger put his patrol vehicle between a running elk and a crowd of onlookers. The bull turned and squared off with the big SUV. A moment later a banging noise could be heard. As the ranger pulled away, the elk ran off and the vehicle showed the result. The rear passenger side door handle was shattered, the sheet metal on the door was torn and there were dents in the door as well.

https://www.kbzk.com/news/outdoors/elk-rut-gives-yellowstone-visitors-a-scary-thrill-in-mammoth-village

[LudwigPastorius]

32. Mess with the elk,...

get the antlers.


Also known as: Fuck around and find out.