May - Yellowstone National Park managers on Monday warned visitors to leave wildlife alone after two tourists put a newborn bison calf in their car, touching off a string of events that led to the animal's death.
The visitors from outside the United States came across the baby bison alone last week and decided to drive the calf to a park facility, unaware that interference with newborn animals could cause their mothers to reject them, park managers said in a statement.
Yellowstone rangers repeatedly tried to reunite the calf with the herd but those efforts failed. Ultimately, the abandoned calf was euthanized because it repeatedly approached people and cars along the roadway, raising safety concerns, officials said.
Almost 5,000 bison, also known as buffalo, freely roam throughout Yellowstone and are a top draw for the millions of American and international tourists who annually flock to the park that spans parts of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.