When temperatures dip below zero in Yellowstone National Park, tourists are scarce but the park’s 4,500 bison carry on out of necessity.
The accompanying footage, courtesy of Yellowstone Forever, offers a surreal glimpse into the life of the legendary critters in extreme weather.
“Bison herd making tracks and shadows this past weekend in Yellowstone’s Lamar Valley at about -20 degrees F.,” the nonprofit stated Wednesday via social media.
Yellowstone National Park is the only destination in the lower 48 states to have boasted free-ranging bison herds since prehistoric times.
They can be found year-round in Lamar Valley in the park’s northern range, and in Hayden Valley to the south. In the winer, when temperatures can dip below minus-40 degrees, bison might also be found near thermal areas in the western portion of the park.
Bison feed mostly on grasses and grass-like plants, and during the winter they often use their massive heads to shovel snow while traveling and searching for food.
Their only predators are grizzly bears, which are currently hibernating, and wolves, which like bison must carry on despite the cold.
