Joe Kahlo
This is the moment a wildlife photographer came across an extremely rare encounter between a grizzly bear and a wolf
Taken at Yellowstone National Park, Seth Royal Kroft heard that a large grizzly bear had killed a bull elk and so he hoped there would be more animals getting involved.
So he set his alarm at 2 am and arrived at the scene by 6 am, still in the dark with the hope of catching some action.
After a short while, a gray wolf walked up to the grizzly bear, most likely after picking up the scent of his meal.
The sun began to rise over the river while the mist cleared, and Seth was gifted with some of the most amazing shots ever.
Despite spending time in the mountains, regularly taking pictures of wildlife, this was the first time he ever had a close encounter with a wolf.
“It was very exciting. I have encountered black bears while camping a number of times over the years, but they are relatively harmless in most situations,” he told Bored Panda.
“I’ve only come across grizzly bears a few times and only in Yellowstone park. All that to say I will still generally carry bear spray on my person when hiking in potential bear country.”
Seth grew up in Montana, surrounded by wildlife, and so his photography journey began naturally:
“I just took pictures of whatever animal I encountered. Looking back, my early wildlife photos were atrocious, but that’s how you learn and grow. It was only recently that I actually purchased a ‘wildlife’ lens.”
Check out the full encounter below:
Both the grizzly and the wolf seemed to not be bothered with each other, with the wolf leaving and coming back a few times over the next few hours.
“As large as it was, the grizzly knew a single wolf wasn’t any kind of threat. The wolf seemed to have a mischievous, playful demeanor.”
“As if it was a game. It would slowly get as close as it could to the elk carcass, achieving a distance of mere inches from it before the bear would stir slightly and sent the wolf quickly retreating.”
Apparently, the wolf attempted to approach the bear for food four times before disappearing back into the woods, empty-handed.
All image credits go to Seth Royal Kroft, check out his Instagram for more amazing wildlife shots.
Gray wolves and bears have peacefully coexisted throughout a large part of North America for a long time.
Most interactions usually involve food sources, just like this one. They can sometimes get a little aggressive, but often they’re pretty calm.
