A grizzly bear decided it had just had enough of a wolf trying to mooch off its meal of a bison carcass in the Yellowstone River, and the frustrated bear’s roars echoed as it went after the wolf, baring its teeth and swiping with its front paws.
The wolf in turn snarled and snapped, but backed off.
Though the rival carnivores were right on top of each other, they never actually made contact, and both emerged unscathed from the encounter, wildlife photographer Julie Argyle told Cowboy State Daily.
Wolves and grizzlies will sometimes square off over food sources, but actual fights are rare, because neither species wants to risk injury, biologist Cecily Costello said.
She said that the video Argyle captured of the encounter is “impressive” and the bear’s angry vocalizations were “typical bear noises.”
Buffet At The Rapids
The wolf-grizzly drama unfolded early Sunday in Yellowstone National Park in the LeHardys Rapids section of the Yellowstone River.
It can be a buffet for predators and scavengers, because the carcasses of bison that drown upstream can wash up along the riverbank there, said Argyle, who has watched and photographed wildlife in the park for years.
“The carcass appeared to be that of a large bull bison,” the wildlife photographer added.
Several wolves from the Wapiti Lake pack were drawn to the carcass, as were a couple of grizzlies, she said.
Antagonizing Wolf
Initially a single bear, somewhat small as far as grizzlies go, was feeding on the carcass, Argyle said.
“That’s why the wolves weren’t too afraid about getting near that bear,” she said.
One wolf in particular was perhaps too bold for its own good, Argyle said.
“I was actually very surprised when that wolf went in there and was brave enough to go right up next to the bear like that,” Argyle recounted.
The wolf almost seemed to be antagonizing the bear, practically touching the grizzly as both animals bit into the carcass.
Until the bear decided that enough was enough and went for the wolf, loudly voicing its anger.
“The noise was incredible,” Argyle said.
The bear appeared to only just miss clobbering the wolf in the face with a swipe of its paw, but the wolf was quick enough to avoid having its jaw shattered.
Another, larger grizzly also showed up to partake of the carcass. Argyle said there were a few more minor disputes, posturing and the like, but no actual fights broke out.
She noted that the area had been closed off early Tuesday because apparently some people were trying to get too close to the wolves and the grizzlies, in the wake of a reported grizzly mauling in the park.
‘Classic Behavior’
Costello, the statewide grizzly research biologist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), told Cowboy State Daily that such confrontations between bears and wolves aren’t uncommon around carcasses.
“We often see that the bears tend to be dominant in these situations,” she said. "But that’s not always true, and it’s especially not true when it’s a pack of wolves."
Biologist Doug Smith, who led the wolf program in Yellowstone National Park for three decades, told Cowboy State Daily that the video shows “classic behavior” on the wolf’s part.
“Wolves try to steal bites and bears are stronger. It’s an age-old dance,” he said.
“Bears don’t waste time chasing wolves. They’ll go two or three steps at the most, because wolves are faster and quicker,” Smith added.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
