Yellowstone Nationwide Park, recognized for its distinctive geothermal areas, geologic wonders, and huge wildlife viewing alternatives, is a considerably much less well-liked vacationer vacation spot within the winter than the summer season. Visitations drop dramatically between the months of November and April, with a mean of simply 4.06% of the park’s annual guests attending throughout these six months.
Winter in Yellowstone continues to be an unimaginable expertise for vacationers, offering incredible alternatives to expertise the geothermal and geologic options in relative solitude. As well as, many animals search refuge from deep snowpacks by transferring in the direction of decrease elevations, creating unmatched wildlife viewing for guests.
Yellowstone Nationwide Park is house to an estimated 34 to 42 mountain lions. Within the winter they observe their principal prey in the direction of decrease elevations the place the snowpack is much less dense. Whereas they’re round, particularly within the park’s northern vary, the elusive nature of the apex predators imply they’re very hardly ever seen by vacationers. Often a customer will discover themselves fortunate sufficient to identify the animals within the wild, such was the case when this videographer was in a position to seize footage of two mountain lions among the many snowy rocks of Yellowstone.
Mountain lion sightings, just like the one above, normally happen from a distance and sometimes round daybreak or nightfall. Mountain lions are unpredictable and could be harmful, and their presence shouldn’t be taken flippantly. Animal carcasses ought to be averted in mountain lion territory, because the animals will generally return to kill sights over a number of days. Learn extra on cougar security beneath:
- Don’t jog or hike alone. Go in teams with adults supervising kids.
- Preserve kids near you. Don’t enable kids to play alongside river banks, in heavy vegetation, or alone at daybreak or nightfall. When mountain climbing with kids, watch them carefully and by no means allow them to run forward of you. Observations of captured wild mountain lions reveal that the animals appear particularly drawn to kids.
When you encounter a lion, keep in mind the targets are to persuade it that you’re not prey and that you could be be harmful. Comply with these security suggestions:
- Don’t strategy a lion. Most mountain lions will attempt to keep away from a confrontation. Give them a strategy to escape.
- Don’t run from a lion. Working might stimulate a mountain lion’s intuition to chase. As a substitute, stand and face the animal. Make eye contact. You probably have young children with you, decide them up if potential in order that they don’t panic and run. Though it might be awkward, decide them up with out bending over or turning away from the mountain lion.
- Don’t crouch down or bend over. A human standing up is simply not the correct form for a lion’s prey. Conversely, an individual squatting or bending over resembles a four-legged prey animal. In mountain lion nation, keep away from squatting, crouching or bending over, even when selecting up kids.
- Do all you’ll be able to to look bigger. Elevate your arms. Open your jacket in case you are sporting one. Once more, decide up young children. Throw stones, branches, or no matter you’ll be able to attain with out crouching or turning your again. Wave your arms slowly and communicate firmly in a loud voice. The thought is to persuade the mountain lion that you’re not prey and that you could be be a hazard to it.
- Battle again if attacked. A hiker in southern California used a rock to fend off a mountain lion that was attacking his son. Others have fought again efficiently with sticks, caps, jackets, backyard instruments and their naked fingers. Since a mountain lion normally tries to chew the top or neck, attempt to stay standing and face the attacking animal.
