Usa news

Instant karma as Montana moose shows two men why you never tease wildlife

Usa today news
Credit: @bibwitharte via Storyful A man was charged at by a moose in Big Sky, Montana, on March 29, after ignoring warnings from locals to leave the animal alone. Video recorded by Jason Holfensperger shows a group warning two men to move away from the moose. Holfensperger told Storyful the men were tourists visiting the area. The two men mock the local group?s concern and slowly approach the moose. Holfensperger told Storyful that he was trying to communicate to the tourists that the animals can become aggressive when startled. ?It?s a god damn wild animal, get the f*** away from it,? Holfensperger is heard saying in the video. The two men scoff at the concern and slowly shuffle towards the animal while taunting Holfensperger. ?A little closer, a little closer,? one of the men says, while approaching the animal. After one of the men touches the animal, the moose turns towards him and begins to charge. The man falls over and begins to scramble away, falling over again on the icy surface. Holfensperger said that neither men appeared injured following the charge, not accounting for potential ?bruised egos?.
On a frosty roadside up in the great US state of Montana, a pair of somewhat foolhardy men learned the hard way that wild animals aren’t props for your phone camera. A short video uploaded to YouTube by ABC7 shows the duo approaching a moose standing by an icy verge. The video begins with the two men laughing and asking the bystander filming, ‘Is it your moose?!’ To which the guy with the camera replies, ‘No, it’s not my moose – it’s a f****** wild animal. Get the f*** away from it! You guys must be the dumbest people I’ve ever met in my life.’ One of the men then creeps up behind the animal and touches its hindquarters. The moose swiftly turns and the man immediately slips and falls as the creature decides that enough is enough… (Picture: @bibwitharte via Storyful)
As the video continues the moose charges the pair and they scatter in panic, as those watching on can be heard shouting ‘Yeah, get him! Get him!’ Luckily, neither one of them was reportedly injured, but the encounter could easily have ended far, far worse. Moose really are big powerful animals and can be unpredictable, especially when provoked. The pair caught on camera by a local bystander could’ve easily become victims of a serious wildlife attack, rather than just a minor public humiliation. (Picture: @bibwitharte via Storyful)
Wildlife experts frequently warn that such stunts are dangerous, not only for the both people concerned, but also for the animals. Getting too close can stress an animal or provoke a charge that might lead to injury or worse. The state of Montana actually classifies harassment of wild game animals as unlawful, with penalties including fines and even jail time. (Picture: @bibwitharte via Storyful)
Comments under the video were – as you might expect – both brutal and blunt. With one user writing: ‘That moose was tame in its charge here. They were lucky that’s all it did’. Another added: ‘In my state that is 100% illegal…. you can NOT harass the wildlife’. The online crowd had no sympathy for the men or their ill-judged attempt at a bit of fun. (Picture: @bibwitharte via Storyful)
This incident joins a growing gallery of online clips capturing both naïve tourists or locals with poor decision-making skills either feeding wild creatures or get far too close to predators and large game. From bull elk in Colorado to bears in US national parks, there’s an ever-growing list of people forgetting the basic rule: ‘give wild animals space and respect and they probably won’t want to gore you to death’. (Picture: Getty Images)
Conservation groups such as the Wildlife Conservation Society promote so-called ‘Leave No Trace’ principles. These tend to include staying at a safe distance, avoiding feeding or harassing wildlife and reporting dangerous behaviour when you see it. The idea is simple: you share the space, not the spotlight. The takeaway? Don’t taunt a moose, don’t treat wildlife like entertainment and please, please keep your hands off its backside. (Picture: Getty Images)
Exit mobile version