A few bison attacks result from plain old bad luck, but most arise when people suppress common sense and get much, much too close to the biggest land animal in North America. People have long invaded bison personal space for snapshot purposes, and our era’s selfie craze hasn’t helped matters. In 2015, five people were gored by bison in Yellowstone in separate incidents – three of the attacks directly stemming from the victim crowding the animals for a picture.
Certainly some of that foolhardy behaviour can be attributed to underestimating the bison’s athleticism, power, and cantankerousness: essentially equating the shaggy, humped beast with a dull-mannered cow. (As Patsy Holmes told Fox 13 of being toppled by the Yellowstone bison, “We just weren’t scared of him, and I think that’s the mistake ... people need to realize they’re wild animals.”)
Well, to emphasise: A bison is not a cow. Domestic cattle have been bred for placid grazing and packing on pounds. Bison, by contrast, are tough-as-nails beasts with hardcore Ice Age roots, designed to withstand the blizzards, droughts, wolves, and grizzlies of the North American grasslands. Despite their immensity – bulls may weigh a ton – they’re remarkably swift and agile, capable of racehorse speed and vertical jumps of some 1.85 metres (6 feet).
(Incidentally, ever seen a bison on a trampoline? Here – now you have.)
Not only can a bison outrun you, but it can make surprisingly tight turns, as these videos – educationally posted on Yellowstone National Park’s website – attest:
Aurochs, a Eurasian wild bovine that was the ancestor of domestic bovines.
