Bison boils to death in Yellowstone hot spring
Video: Bison herd escorts calves across road in Yellowstone
A bison herd filled with calves crossed US-212 in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, in late May 2023. Toby Tollefsen recorded this video while on a trip to the park.
Yellowstone tourists witnessed a rare and distressing event earlier this month at the popular Grand Prismatic Springs.
A bison was wandering around the edge when it stumbled into the scalding water and couldn’t get out and drowned, according to one tourist’s account.
Bison "boiled" in Yellowstone spring
FILE - An archive photo of a bison riding through columns of steam at Yellowstone National Park's Grand Prismatic Spring. (Photo: Paolo Picciotto/REDA/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
What they're saying:
"Unfortunately, I witnessed the bison drowning in the Grand Prismatic Springs early yesterday morning," a woman named Louise Howard shared on June 22 in a public group on Facebook for Yellowstone photography.
"It took a few steps into a shallow area to the right of the pool, it turned around and stepped out very quickly. It stood for a moment, then turned back towards the spring and stepped into a deeper section then couldn’t get out despite trying its best. I have a video of it coming up to take its last breath but it’s a tough watch."
She shared a few photos but did not share the video, and spoke to CBS News about what she saw.
An Arizona woman said she saw the animal’s remains hours later, and shared photos with USA Today. She was camping with her family and returned the next morning to find the animal still there, and said she hopes park rangers will leave it as part of the "circle of life."
FOX Television Stations reached out to officials at Yellowstone National Park for more information.
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Grand Prismatic Springs
FILE - Yellowstone National Park's Grand Prismatic Spring. NPS / Curtis Akin
Big picture view:
Grand Prismatic Spring is Yellowstone’s largest hot spring.
By the numbers:
It is 200–330 feet in diameter and more than 121 feet deep. A scientist at Yellowstone, Michael Poland, told CBS News that temperatures can reach about 192 degrees Fahrenheit, which is just close to boiling at that elevation.
Dig deeper:
Poland said park officials have found animal skeletons in hot springs before, so it’s not unheard of for animals to accidentally stumble inside when the thin layer of crusted ground beneath them gives way. But this circumstance was more unusual, he told the outlet, since it happened in the summertime and around a popular tourist spot.
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Bison gores Yellowstone tourists
Meanwhile:
It is not uncommon for bison to make headlines at the popular national park for other incidents.
Most recently, a 30-year-old man from New Jersey was gored by a bison in early June, marking the second time a bison goring has happened in the park this year.
Two goring incidents were also reported in 2024, and one in 2023.
The Source: Information in this article was taken from a Facebook user’s post to a public group about photography in Yellowstone, and comments given to various national news outlets by the user and an official with Yellowstone National Park. Background information about Yellowstone was taken from the national park’s government website.