On July 10, 2026, a bull bison charged a 65-year-old man walking through a campground in Yellowstone National Park, tossing him about eight feet into the air and causing a broken femur and other serious leg injuries.

The incident, along with a series of bear incidents in Great Smoky Mountains National Park that led to trail closures and safety reminders in April 2026, has renewed public attention on wildlife encounters and how people can safely share space with wild animals.

Nils Peterson, a professor of forestry and environmental resources at North Carolina State University who studies human-wildlife interactions, said wildlife attacks — particularly in national parks — are rare. 

“Wildlife attacks are rare when compared with the millions of people who visit national parks each year. But because these encounters are dramatic and unexpected, they attract significant public attention,” Peterson said. 

Peterson, however, cautioned that human-wildlife conflicts are becoming more frequent in national parks like Yellowstone and Great Smoky Mountains, largely because more people are spending time in areas shared with wildlife.

“I don’t think people are behaving worse than they used to, and wildlife aren’t behaving differently either,” he said. “We’re simply having more people and more wildlife share the same spaces, so it’s natural that we’ll see more interactions.”

There are still situations where people get too close to wildlife or underestimate the risks involved, according to Peterson. In the case of Yellowstone’s bison, he said many visitors may mistakenly view them as similar to cattle rather than recognizing them as wild animals.

“The big misconception is that large herbivores aren’t dangerous,” Peterson said. “People often associate danger with large predators, but they don’t always recognize that large herbivores can also be powerful and capable of causing serious harm.”

When it comes to wildlife like bears, whether it’s in Yellowstone or Great Smoky Mountains, human behavior also plays a factor in shaping these interactions. Peterson said bears can become conditioned to associate people with food when they repeatedly find easy sources of food, such as unsecured trash or items left in vehicles. 

Research shows that when bears associate humans with food, they lose their natural fear of humans and are more likely to approach developed areas expecting easy meals, increasing the likelihood of conflict.

Peterson said human-wildlife conflict is sometimes unavoidable, such as when a hiker is attacked by an aggressive female bear trying to protect its cubs, but most parks — both at the state and national levels — have trained professionals and protocols in place to reduce risks and protect both visitors and wildlife.

Yellowstone National Park, for example, requires visitors to maintain at least 25 yards of distance from animals such as bison and elk and 100 yards from bears and wolves. Great Smoky Mountains National Park uses similar safety guidelines to encourage visitors to give bears and other wildlife plenty of space.

Peterson encouraged visitors to trust the guidance of park officials and follow the rules designed to keep both people and wildlife safe. “Park rangers are trained professionals, and I wouldn’t second-guess their guidance,” he said. “They’re the experts when it comes to how people should interact with wildlife.”

This post was originally published in College of Natural Resources News.