Things at Yellowstone National Park took a dark turn last weekend. Horrified tourists watched a bull bison get boiled alive after stepping into scalding hot springs.
The animal walked straight into the Grand Prismatic Spring, tumbling into the hot water. Although it tried to escape, the bison was unable to free itself and ultimately died in the pool.
"It took a few steps into a shallow area to the right of the pool, turned around, and stepped out very quickly," Witness Louise Howard wrote on social media. "It stood for a moment, then turned back towards the spring and stepped into a deeper section, then couldn't get out despite trying its best."
Following its passing, Yellowstone tourists observed the animal's remains floating in the pool. But soon, it will become just a pile of bones. Mike Poland, scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, spoke with Cowboy State Daily about the incident.
"The misconception that a lot of people have is that all of the hot springs in Yellowstone are acidic," he told Cowboy State Daily. "If you touch the water or fall in, you will dissolve because the acid will eat you away. But that's not the case."
Boiling Pools Kill Bison At Yellowstone
Most of Yellowstone's thermal pools, including Grand Prismatic, are neutral on the pH scale. The water isn't acidic at all, so it doesn't have the ability to dissolve anything.
It's not the acid but the heat that's the biggest killer for these thermal pools. It's a pool of boiling water.
"People think of the pools like alien blood or something like that," Poland said. "That's not the way the pools work. The big hot springs are almost all neutral, but they're boiling. That's what causes harm to people and animals. There are a few places that are acidic, but not absurdly so. You're not going to dissolve organic matter in pools like Grand Prismatic. People think all the pools are potently acidic, but that just isn't the case."
However, the death of the bison is a chilling warning about Yellowstone's thermal pools and safety. Don't fall in yourself or you'll get boiled.
"This sort of thing isn't common, but it does happen from time to time," Poland said. "I've never seen an animal go into one of the hot springs, but I've heard plenty of stories of people seeing elk or bison caught in hot areas that haven't been able to get out."
