Leave your face out of nature

In case you haven’t heard, there has been an increase in injuries in Yellowstone NationalPark this year. Who causes theses injuries? Is it bears? Is it wolves? Is it mountain lions? Well technically it’s bison but it’s all the tourists’ fault and let me tell you why.

In a culture that’s obsessed with taking pictures and showing our presence in places, a lot of tourists in Yellowstone (and other national parks) have risked their lives in order to “take a selfie with a bison” or other animals.  When you try and get close to a bison or a deer, you stress them out and they attack you. So why do you want to take pictures with a wild animal?The word why is screaming in my head.  I have a theory as to why. It’s the same reason why people pay to take pictures with wild animals in zoos and it’s the same reason people climb dangerous hills to take a picture of themselves with a stunning view.

We want to be part of nature and in some cases safe nature.

Safe nature is what I call Nature that is beautiful and marvelous but won’t harm us for our stupidity. Take zoos and parks for example. They charge a lot of money for a chance to take pictures with wolves, tigers, bears etc. These are dangerous animals and often elusive and having a picture with one shows that you care. It shows that you are a part of nature and makes you stand out from the norm of Facebook/Twitter/social media profile pictures. 

Through my experience working with captive wolves, I’ve come to identify two kinds of people that are interested in them. The first group are the genuine wolf lovers. They are more interested in the wolf than they actually are about taking pictures. They will interact with the wolf, observe it and to them just touching the wolf and being there is a great honor. The second group is the vanity lovers. These people may love the wolf but love what it represents and how their love of wolves will appear to the rest of the world. They care less about the animals and more about being positioned next to them, getting a picture interacting with them and so forth.  The line is very thin.

Unfortunately vanity lovers aren’t only present in zoos and this is where the main problem occurs. In zoos, the captive animals are under some sort of control. But in the wild an animal that attacks humans is very likely to be put down, removed from the wild and transferred to a zoo or even become so upset that it’s vulnerable to predation. Several studies have suggested that our presence in national parks and in the ocean wildlife watching has a significant impact on the animals as it stresses them out, reduces their physical condition and often cause miscarriage and alteration in behavior.  

But it’s all worth it for the selfie right? Well no. Not only are they potentially harming themselves and the animal but are also setting precedent for others to act on. While one tourist can get away with a selfie or a video interacting with wildlife, others may not be so lucky. Don’t just consider attacks. Even small animals like squirrels may be harmful as they may carry diseases that could be contracted by tourists who interact with them.

So here is a simple idea, leave the selfies alone. Put your phone down and enjoy nature for what it is. If you happen to be lucky enough to have a unique encounter with wildlife, cherish it for what it is and don’t try and take pictures with yourself in it.

If you want to take pictures of wildlife make sure you do it from a safe distance, following protocol set in place(bear spray, particular distance etc) and be responsible. Wildlife and nature aren’t there for your enjoyment and you should feel grateful to be in their presence. Otherwise visit a zoo. That’s what they are there for.