A protective mother bear sent tourists running for cover in Yellowstone National Park after they got a little too close to her cubs. The black bear didn’t take kindly to the close proximity of visitors to her babies as paths crossed while walking over a bridge.
The maternal instinct clearly took over as she repeatedly charged alarmed visitors until the bridge was clear of all human presence. A mixture of young and old fled as fast as they could, many taking refuge behind the nearest parked automobile.
The scene was captured by a videographer and the footage released by the Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks. From the video, the cubs are estimated to be 13 months old, very close to the age at which they will separate from their mother and begin to fend for themselves. If the cubs had been younger events could have certainly been much worse, as black bears will fiercely guard their young against perceived threat.
“A mama bear with cubs is not something you want to get near to at all,” Jack Hanna, director emeritus of the Columbus Zoo, told ABC news. Fortunately nobody was injured as a result of the incident, which has gone viral over the last couple of days. The advent of warm spring weather brings an increase in visitors to the stunning and awe-inspiring Yellowstone National Park, a wonderland of natural beauty and wildlife.
The spring rush also coincides with black bears rousing from hibernation feeling hungry, thirsty and ready to forage. Yellowstone National Park attracted over 3.5 million visitors last year according to the US National Park Service.
