Paul Cantrell
What @dabertime says here is basic but extremely important and may be news to some.
While we’re doing wildlife safety advice:
Moose are •extremely• dangerous. They look harmless. They are not. Mostly easygoing, but will trample you to death without a second thought if they think you might be a threat — and can run 35 mph in dense forest.
Mountain lions won’t hunt adult humans, but •do not• let young kids or dogs wander ahead or behind on the trail. Keep them close.
Paul Cantrell
OTOH, if you would like your dog to be killed and eaten, go ahead and let them off leash in the wilderness, by all means.
Paul Cantrell
And good lord, this should be obvious, but I’ve seen it with my own eyes:
Do not approach buffalo. They are not cuddly. They are basically semi trucks with zero fucks to give. They are a threat to you •inside• your vehicle. FFS don’t approach them.
Paul Cantrell
@TSlider I grew up next door in Colorado, and these stories are a part of my childhood. Age old.
Tom Slider
@inthehands
I live in Wyoming and the stories of tourists being wounded or killed by wildlife had become commonplace. People don't understand they are WILD animals, and they will kill you.
Paul Cantrell
@pmonks @dabertime
They must be more timid in Colorado!
pmonks (330ppm)
@inthehands mountain lions *will* hunt solitary adult humans if they remain undetected (they’re mostly an ambush predator). This is a fairly common occurrence in the Sierra Nevada in California, for example. @dabertime
Paul Cantrell
@Okanogen @AlgoCompSynth
Buffalo, NY was named for the local wildlife. Of course they were hunted to extinction there, but the range is not limited to the Mountain West even today.
In any case, to your original question, I’m from Colorado.
okanogen TheEnemyFromWithin
@AlgoCompSynth @inthehands
Oh heck yeah there are over 33,000 bison in South Dakota as of 2020. There are something like a half million in North Dakota.
https://www.blackhillsbadlands.com/bison-american-buffalo
https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/north-dakota/bison-park-nd/
Zorro Notorious MEB 😡
@Okanogen @inthehands I figured they were mostly in Yellowstone and Glacier - they roam ND and SD too?
okanogen TheEnemyFromWithin
@AlgoCompSynth @inthehands
Yeah, but mostly South and North Dakota and lots of Minnesota still visit there.
Zorro Notorious MEB 😡
@inthehands You have bison in Minnesota?
Dwight (DB) 🤔
@inthehands I've seen video of bears running for their lives while they're being chased by moose.
BlueDotAZ
@inthehands @dabertime I ran into a moose once walking my dog in Maine. Everyone froze, me, the moose, and thankfully the dog. We all stood frozen for a good 30 seconds. I said to her, I’ll go this way if you go that way and we all did. I was very lucky.
Paul Cantrell
@cujobyte @dabertime
I’ve had a similar experience. Hiking with my mom: “we should be careful, this habitat favors moose — oh like THAT ONE RIGHT THERE, 30 ft away.” Hair-raising.
Paul Cantrell
@AlgoCompSynth Nope, just lived here for 29 years! And I’m finally starting to understand some of the local culture
Zorro Notorious MEB 😡
@inthehands Oh ... I thought you were from Minnesota.
Real Programmer
@inthehands @dabertime I live in a land in which the apex predator is the badger.
Stay away, they can give you a nasty nip!
Drew Derbyshire
@inthehands courtesy of my brother-in-law, a Yellowstone Park Ranger.
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