A shameless drone operator has been slammed by angry visitors after circling a remote-controlled aircraft around a mama grizzly bear and her cubs at Yellowstone National Park. Don Johnson was filming the family of bears on May 14 near Grizzly Lake when he unwittingly captured the device getting dangerously close to the wild animals, he told Cowboy State Daily.
Johnson, of Idaho Falls, Idaho, was in a crowd around 6:30 p.m. watching Beryl, a beloved mother grizzly, and her two cubs as they wandered around the lake area. He filmed the trio on his iPhone, but also caught the drone flying so close to the bears that they could have 'swatted it out of the air,' the outlet reported.
The video shows the bears appearing to spot the device almost immediately, with one cub getting close and jumping back in fear. Eventually, the mother bear and her cubs ran from the drone just before it flew up into the sky. Johnson said he didn't notice the drone until a ranger yelled out something about it. 'I didn't even notice the drone at the time. I didn't pay any attention to it until I heard a ranger yell out something about a drone, and by then I was done filming,' Johnson recalled.
The ranger's warning caused the crowd to realize the drone, sparking anger. 'Everybody was madder than hell,' Johnson said. 'If anybody caught them, they'd probably have strung them up.' The video, shared on Facebook, garnered over 30,000 views and irate comments. One commenter wrote, 'She’s confused by that drone, not ok to do that.' Another added, 'Beryl and her cubs are gorgeous!! I hope they can stay safe and healthy and live a long life. To the inconsiderate people who are flying drones near the bears, frightening them, I hope you have to pay a huge fine.'
Johnson called for the act to be illegal, unaware that it already is. Flying drones within any national park, including Yellowstone, is a crime punishable by up to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine. The park spans Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana. The drone pilot remains unidentified, but Johnson said they were controlling it from 'around the corner and behind the hill.' 'I wish I’d caught them,' he added.
The incident has left many divided over what should happen next. 'You got some people wanting to ban the tourists, but most people didn't say much except that they hope they get caught,' Johnson told the outlet. The Daily Mail contacted Yellowstone National Park for comment.
