Unprecedented flash flooding has forced officials to remove all tourists from Yellowstone National Park this week due to safety concerns to the public. However, ecologists within the park have begun to report unusual activity of the park’s buffalo population mauling other park wildlife in the sudden absence of tourists trying to approach and pet them.
“We noticed dead and dying animals throughout the park over the last couple days. It wasn’t until recently that we were able to witness the buffalo attacking other creatures,” reported Yellowstone ranger Fred Aferton, “And sure, we have seen them go after foxes and deer and other small game, but in this instance, they were going after a grizzly out by Old Faithful.”
Reports of bison herds acting strangely were forwarded to park officials closely following the park closure. Other ecologists familiar with buffalo claim that the lack of tourists have caused an entertainment void for the buffalo that needed to be filled with other forms. Upon this report, officials worry that the buffalo activity has expanded past pummeling tourists and other wildlife for sport. Eyewitness accounts have claimed that buffalo were not just mutilating animals, but also attacking forests, buildings, and even the flash floods themselves.
“It’s actually a great environmental challenge that nobody saw coming,” said Yellowstone superintendent Cam Sholly, “The absence of tourists distracting buffalo at visitor centers has truly made the herds run rampant and reeking havoc on the other populations that reside within the park.”
“We are now just understanding the consequences of removing tourists from the habitat. If left unattended, we could see more destruction by the buffalo, such as massive biodiversity loss, deforestation, and exploitation of Yellowstone’s great natural resources.”
In response to the rise of buffalo supremacy, park officials have seen bands of wildlife come together in an attempt to fix the infrastructure that currently prevents tourists from being a distraction for the buffalo. However, officials emphasize that the problems of buffalo beating up on the local wildlife will not be resolved without human involvement.
Continued Sholly: “We assumed that since tourists were not natural to this habitat, that removing them would have favorable results. However, over the years, a symbiosis between the tourists and buffalo have kept order in the park. Now that buffalo can’t ram into cars or don’t need to worry about their children being stolen, they have the energy to venture onto other interests. Man we need these people back.”
While a timeline has not been established, park officials are committed to reintroducing tourists into the Yellowstone ecosystem as soon as possible.
THE OUTDOOR ENTHUSIAST 
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