VIDEO: Montage of Yellowstone NP Scenes Shows How Ornery Bison Are During the Rut

The bison rut is winding down for the year.  And in this way, in fact in all ways, 2020 has been a doozy.  But as exciting and scary as the bison rutting season is in modern times, imagine how it must have been in pre-Lewis and Clark Montana - heck, pre-Columbian Montana. 

Back then, scientists estimate some 30-60 million bison roamed North America.  Can you imagine some 15 - 30 million male bison, nearly every one them ornery and agitated?  It must have been a holy terror to witness, something akin to 10 or 12 Godzillas charging across the landscape. 

Of course, back then, nobody would have been around to film it and share it online!

Youtube channel Epic Nature uploaded a beautifully shot compiliation of scenes from the bison rut in Yellowstone National Park, including but not limited to male bison fighting.  The video also includes touching scenes of bison family units, including calves nursing and playing, and a herd wading through deep water. 

The footage opens with what might be the most beautiful shot - the herd grazing and resting next to the shore.  It serves as a great reminder that these majestic animals went from that 60 million down to a profoundly endangered 525 in the world before slowly regaining their numbers through careful conservation.  Today some 500,000 bison thrive in North America.

See the whole video below, and be very glad that you don't have 60 million bison to contend with on your morning commute!