Earlier this week, a pair of Canadian tourists put a baby bison into the back of their SUV and demanded to speak with a park ranger, fearing the calf was cold.
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The Wyoming U.S. Attorney’s Office has filed charges against three of the men, identified as Charles Ryker Gamble, Alexey Andriyovych Lyakh and Justis Cooper Price-Brown.
According to Rachel Cudmore, who works at the Yellowstone National Park and spoke with the Chronicle via email, the High On Life men filed no permit prior to their escapades.
We have contacted Yellowstone National Park officials to get a better understanding of the ticket handed out to the tourists, and what fine and/or punishment they might receive; we will update you if we get more details.
“The bison calf was later euthanized because it was abandoned and causing a risky situation by continually approaching people and cars along the roadway”, the statement said.
“Last week, visitors were cited for placing a newborn bison calf in their vehicle and transporting it to a park facility because of their misplaced concern for the animal’s welfare”, Yellowstone National Park said in a statement posted to its Facebook page.
“In recent weeks, visitors in the park have been engaging in inappropriate, dangerous, and illegal behavior with wildlife”, the National Park Service said in a statement on May 16.
Several social media users have, however, questioned why the animal needed to be destroyed rather than moved to another park. We did not respect the protected environment we were exploring, and we want to acknowledge our wrongdoing.
They issued an apology via their social media page, stating “We got over zealous in our enthusiasm for this wonderful place”. In an attempt to get the flawless shot, we acted in a way that doesn’t reflect out respect for the environment we were trying to capture … When standing at the face of such natural wonder, we were drawn to it. We realize that now.
“We would like to apologize to our community”, the group wrote on Facebook Tuesday. Yellowstone is my backyard, and you desecrated our land.
Monday the all-male group, which goes by High on Life SundayFundayz, received a criminal complaint against three of its members for stepping onto the Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest in Yellowstone at 370 feet in diameter and more than 120 feet deep, the Associated Press reports.
There are several signs around the spring warning visitors not to venture off the path.
The calf later had to be euthanized because it couldn’t be reunited with its herd. The calf had to be euthanized because the mother and herd would not take it back and it would have died on its own.
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Five visitors were seriously injured a year ago in Yellowstone after getting too close to bison.
