Part of the fun of going to wildlife reserves is not just seeing nature in all its glory, but having the chance to encounter animals in their natural habitat - free (mostly) of human interference or the confined spaces of zoos. That way you can get to see some of the fine flora and fauna of this Earth, without feeling bad about negatively affecting their lives in any way.

However, there are some people out there who push the boundaries. National parks tend to have rules in place, but they're hard to enforce if a random tourist wants to get as close as possible to the action. For instance, in Yellowstone National Park, there are clear guidelines on how near you are allowed to get to certain creatures, but not everyone follows their advice.

Just last year, there were two incidents of bisons attacking visitors to the park. In May, one woman was walking around the bend of a trail when she was hit by a bison she hadn't seen, getting away with minor injuries. The following month, another woman was gored by a bull bison when she got within ten yards of it - while the suggested safe distance is considered to be around 25 yards, or 7t feet, for this particular animal.

"Animals in Yellowstone are wild and unpredictable, no matter how calm they appear to be," the park's guidelines state. "Give animals space when they're near trails, boardwalks, parking lots, or in developed areas. If you can't maintain these distances, turn around and find an alternate route."

Well, not everyone is so keen to follow these rules. In fact, in this case, the problem was less that someone got close to a bison, but that they actively taunted the aggravated animal. One man got up close to stare down a bison in the middle of a road, surrounded by traffic. The creature was mostly disinterested, but was quickly angered once the man pounded his chest and approached it.

Lindsey Jones was driving through the park with her family when she saw the cars slow to a stop on this road, as a bison wandered through the area. When she saw the man get out of his car to taunt the bison, she used her phone to film the ridiculous act. Jones posted the clip on Facebook, where it has since been viewed more than a million times.

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The bison charges him, but this isn't enough to get the man to back down, as he gets back to taunting the bison once more. As it began its second charge, you can hear Jones exclaim, "Oh god, I can't watch anymore!"

Another person in the car can be heard shouting at the man to "Get out of there!" Eventually the bison, luckily for the man, loses interest and turns away from him. If things had ended up any differently, he only would've had himself to blame.

Tourists have found themselves in a near-death situation after coming into contact with a group of bison during their hikes.

Now, it's pretty common knowledge that if you come into contact with any wild animal, let alone a 2000lbs bison, leave it alone.

However, in this day and age, it seems as though people's need to capture the moment is more pressing than their personal safety, so much so that they would risk their lives just to get a low-quality selfie with the animal.

But the consequences of the situation can be dire, as some tourists discovered at Yellowstone National Park.

Shocking footage uploaded to the Instagram account TouronsOfYellowstone showed multiple instances of different tourists pushing their luck at the hiking trail after coming into contact with the brutish animal.

In one video which was posted to the account on May 21, you can clearly see a woman reaching out toward a bison while the group she was with watched the entire ordeal. Within a split second, the wild beast lunges forward almost as if it was going to attack her, which sent her running away immediately.

Her friends also move away from it, as she stumbles in a different direction.

The caption on the post read: "The consequences of a bison selfie attempt! Always be bison aware‼️"

People in the comments weren't at all surprised at the tourist's ill-advised actions, with many wondering "how humans have survived this long as a species..."

Credit: Instagram Credit: Instagram

In a separate video, another fearless (or silly, depending on the way you want to look at it) woman approached a bison that was grazing on some grass in an attempt to take a selfie. And while the animal remained peaceful and seated, onlookers told the account that the tourist had "infuriated" them due to her "arrogance."

"Queen Touron of Yellowstone," read the caption of this video posted on Sunday. "Sighted at Biscuit Basin. She was trying to pet it. It was insane. Like inches. Her arrogance was so infuriating. People were telling her to move away and she kept posing for like 10 minutes."

And of course, social media users weren't forgiving to this unidentified woman either with some even wishing there were more serious consequences for her actions including being "trampled" or "arrested."

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According to the official National Park Service website, there are four rules that visitors must follow in order to protect themselves as well as those around them including never approaching or feeding wildlife, staying on boardwalks and trails in thermal areas and never parking in the road or blocking traffic.

They also added that bison are one of the main causes of injuries at Yellowstone given the fact that they are "unpredictable and can run three times faster than humans."

"Always stay at least 25 yards (23 m) away from bison," officials warned.

Other wild animals that hikers can come into contact with during their hike at the National Park include wolves, elk and bears.

Stay safe out there, folks!

Featured Image Credit: Jonathan Mast / Unsplash

A nine-year-old girl has been taken to hospital after a bison charged at her in Yellowstone National Park.

The girl, who has remained unidentified, was tossed violently into the air after the animal ran at her during a visit to the park in Wyoming, USA.

The National Park Service confirmed the incident in a statement released yesterday.

Watch the shocking footage below - the poor girl went flying: 

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The girl was reportedly with a group of people in the Old Faithful Geyser area of the park, and was standing within five to ten feet of the bison when it charged.

The group was comprised of 50-60 people, who were gathered near the animal for around 20 minutes, before doing something that "[caused] the bison to charge". The park service did not specify what provoked the animal.

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Eighteen-year-old Hailey Dayton, who caught the event on camera, says she was filming the bison eating when it suddenly attacked the young girl.

"My brother and I were looking at the hot springs, and we saw a bunch of people running down the path to the bridge. We saw through the trees some people petting the bison, super close," she told NBC News on Wednesday.

"Because it was agitated by all the people and noise, it just kind of attacked," continued Dayton, who was visiting the park on a family road trip. "After that, everyone was screaming. There were a bunch of kids crying."

While the park service's statement confirmed that the 9-year-old was "assessed and treated by park emergency medical providers, and later taken to and released from the Old Faithful Clinic," they did not detail her injuries.

The incident is still under investigation, and no citations have been served.

The National Park Service reiterated that animals at Yellowstone National Park are wild, and that visitors should always stay at least 25 yards away from bison, deer, moose, and elk.

A woman was gored by a bison while at Yellowstone National Park.Now, it's pretty common knowledge that if you come into contact with any animal in the wild, let alone a 2000lbs bison, leave it alone.But some people are happy to put their lives on the line just to get up close and personal with them - and let's just say, it never ends well.An 83-year-old woman was left with serious injuries at the hands of a bison who was said to be "defending its space" at Yellowstone National Park.Credit: Comezora/GettyAccording to an official press release published by the park, the incident occurred on June 1 near the Storm Point trail at Yellowstone Lake when the bison "came within a few feet of the woman and lifted her about a foot off the ground with its horns."Emergency staff first took the woman, who was from Greenville, South Carolina, to the nearby Lake Medical Clinic for treatment before she was airlifted to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, per the statement.Officials did not have any specific information about her condition but noted that she had sustained "serious" injuries at the hands of the beast.Credit: Ruben Bonilla Gonzalo/GettyThis is not the first time we've seen a tourist get attacked by a bison, with rangers at the park announcing that it is the most common attack that takes place at the attraction.Shocking footage uploaded to the Instagram account TouronsOfYellowstone showed multiple instances of different tourists pushing their luck at the hiking trail after coming into contact with the brutish animal.In one video which was posted to the account on March 5, you can clearly see a man taking photographs of a bison, kneeling next to the group. Within a split second, the wild beast starts approaching him with his tail up - a marker of a potential attack.Thankfully the man got away without anything more happening, but not everyone has been so lucky.More recently, a man from Idaho was caught provoking a bison in Yellowstone after he allegedly kicked it. He suffered minor injuries when the wild animal turned on him.After further investigation, he was charged with being under the influence of alcohol, disorderly conduct, approaching wildlife, and disturbing wildlife, as per an update by park officials.According to the official National Park Service website, there are four rules that visitors must follow in order to protect themselves as well as those around them including never approaching or feeding wildlife, staying on boardwalks and trails in thermal areas, and never parking in the road or blocking traffic.Credit: Matt Anderson Photography/GettyThey also added that bison are one of the main causes of injuries at Yellowstone given the fact that they are "unpredictable and can run three times faster than humans.""Always stay at least 25 yards (23 m) away from bison," officials warned.Other wild animals that hikers can come into contact with during their hike at the National Park include wolves, elk, and bears.Stay safe out there, folks!Featured Image Credit: Don White/Getty

A 72-year-old California woman has been gored multiple times by a bison at Yellowstone National Park.

The incident took place after the woman approached the animal multiple times in a bid to take a picture with it at the Bridge Bay Campground in Wyoming.

According to experts, the animal acted violently because it felt threatened by the woman.

Watch a full news report on the incident below: 

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Yellowstone's Senior Bison Biologist Chris Geremia said in a statement to ABC News on Tuesday: "The series of events that led to the goring suggest the bison was threatened by being repeatedly approached to within 10 feet."

"Bison are wild animals that respond to threats by displaying aggressive behaviors like pawing the ground, snorting, bobbing their head, bellowing, and raising their tail. If that doesn't make the threat (in this instance it was a person) move away, a threatened bison may charge."

Geremia advises staying a minimum of 25 yards away from bison to stay safe.

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Park rangers rushed to help the woman who had been gored with first aid kit before the emergency services arrived and airlifted her to the Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, where she was treated for multiple stab wounds.

According to ABC News, the woman's current condition remains unknown and the incident remains under investigation.

"Wildlife in Yellowstone National Park are wild," Yellowstone authorities said in a statement cited by the Sun.

"When an animal is near a campsite, trail, boardwalk, parking lot, or in a developed area, give It space. Stay more than 25 yards (23m) away from all large animals - bison, elk, bighorn sheep, deer, moose, and coyotes and at least 100 yards (91m) away from bears and wolves. If need be, turn around and go the other way to avoid interacting with a wild animal in close proximity."