u/EfficiencyDry1159

Shot using an olympus omd em10 mark iv and the manual laowa 50mm lens, godox V480 and a diffuser. Hand held focus stack of 4 images.

Getting used to the olympus omd em10 mark iv and the manual laowa 50mm lens. Handheld focus stack of 5 images.

Shot this image using a nikon d850 and nikkor 20mm.

I just returned from a 10-day trip to Yellowstone. As a field biologist who has worked in the Greater Yellowstone area for the past four years and visits monthly, I’ve seen hundreds of bizarre human-wildlife interactions. But this trip was different. I witnessed an overwhelming amount of baffling, disrespectful behavior specifically from our own community (Indians).

I am making this post to:

a) Raise awareness for first-time visitors who aren't used to the outdoors.

b) Promote best practices to keep both people and wildlife safe. Too many animals are euthanized due to human interference and habituation.

c) Set higher standards for our community so we are looked up to, rather than escalating tensions or building negative stereotypes.

Here are the specific behaviors I observed this week:

a) Blocking Roads & Lack of Courtesy: An Indian family stopped literally in the middle of the road to look at a male elk in velvets, completely blocking the view of people who had properly parked in a pull-out long before they arrived. When asked to move, they shouted back and argued. The rule is simple: priority goes to those already there. If you arrive later, find a spot that doesn't block others. If you are in the wrong, apologize and move. Don't ruin a moment someone else waited years or decades to observe.

b) Blasting Music & Loud Talking: This is especially for the 30s–40s age groups visiting mostly with friends. When you are outdoors, please, for the love of whatever you pray to, stop playing loud music or talking in loud voices. Loud noises startle wildlife and ruin the quiet for everyone else. I actually watched a group of techies blasting Telugu music near the central part of Yellowstone.

c) Harassing Private Tours & Ignoring Rangers: If you see a group using spotting scopes, it is usually a private tour people paid thousands of dollars for. Tour guides have told me for years that Indian families frequently barge into their space, overtaking to look through their scopes, and badger them with questions. It is incredibly rude. Furthermore, multiple rangers have told me they are exhausted from having to repeat simple directives (like moving a car or stepping back) over and over to South and East Asians. When a ranger tells you to do something, obey immediately.

d) Dismissiveness Toward Nature: Too many people visit only to cross "charismatic megafauna" off a checklist or take selfies. While I was observing a family of marmots play-fighting, an Indian family stopped to ask what I was looking at. When I told them, they openly scoffed, said it was a "waste of time," and said they only cared about wanting to see wolves. A white American photographer who was next to me and someone I know personally for years was floored by how rude and bizarre the comment was.

How to respect the parks, the wildlife, and fellow visitors:

a) Never stop in the middle of the road. Pull completely into a turnout, park, and walk to a safe viewing spot without blocking others.

b) Give wildlife space. Stop trying to take group selfies with bison. They are wild, unpredictable, and can kill you before you can blink. There was a 12 year old kid who got seriously injured last week by a bison and had to be hospitalized!

c) Obey rangers instantly. Every nationality has its idiots (wandersluts and tourons). Let's make sure our community doesn't lead that list.

d) Keep negative opinions to yourself. If you aren't interested in a specific animal or landscape, just move on quietly instead of broadcasting your dismissiveness to people who are enjoying it.

e) Drive slowly, and don't, for the love of whatever you pray to, be loud or play loud music in natural areas!

Attached is the photo of the exact marmots I was watching when that family called them a "waste of time." Let’s do better, represent our community with pride, and respect these wild spaces.

PS: I have called out any touron who does the above crap, no matter their nationality or skin color and will continue to do so!