Watch a Bear Take Off with an Elk from Junction Butte Wolf Pack

Imagine this. You're a wolf. You found your dinner. Then a bear jumps in and takes off with the elk that is rightfully yours. This happens all the time in Yellowstone and was recently captured on camera.

Peter Thiemann was apparently in the right place at the right time when he had his camera with him in Yellowstone National Park. Here's how Peter described wild kingdom playing out in front of his eyes:

On October 15, 2021, the 24 member Junction Butte wolf pack in Yellowstone and a “friendly” Grizzly Bear engaged in a game of butt nipping and paw swiping over pieces of elk carcass. Slough Creek.

"Friendly" is a nice way of describing this encounter. I doubt either the bear or the wolves would use that word, but he's being polite.

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For the Junction Butte wolf pack in Yellowstone, this is a typical day. Since they make up the largest pack in the park and it's estimated that bears steal up to 80% of wolf kills, they are mathematically the most likely to have a bear in their midst.

While it's hard to discourage a bear once he/she has taken over a carcass, at least Junction Butte has the numbers to overwhelm and the grizzlies don't always win.

Just another day in the wild and wonderful Yellowstone ecosystem and we wouldn't want it any other way.

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