A viral video depicting a child chasing after a family of ducks sparked backlash in its comment section.
In the video, a young girl chases after the ducks, clearly terrorizing them as they go about their day. To protect itself and its family, the adult duck retaliates by attacking the child.
The account, Tourons of National Parks (@touronsofnationalparks) on Instagram, wrote in the caption: "I noticed that she steps on one of the babies when she starts chasing them!"
The creator mentioned that the child inflicting the injury was what prompted the duck to attack.
"Please don't let your children terrorize animals," the account wrote.
Tourists harming wildlife is a worrying trend in national parks. Not only does this inflict damage on the wildlife and ecosystem, but it also puts humans in danger. Even if animals look harmless, when faced with danger, they act on instincts to protect themselves and their family.
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There are also growing issues with animals becoming habituated to human interaction, putting them in vulnerable positions and less likely to survive in their native settings.
Animal habituation occurs in populated tourist areas, where people ignore guidelines to not feed animals or to stay off certain trails. When animals get used to humans feeding them, they are more likely to approach people frequently, exposing themselves to dangerous areas.
With elk in particular, Grand Canyon National Park wrote that habituation harms people because when it happens, "elk in the park allow humans to come very close to them. However, they can still be startled and will feel threatened if a person comes too close."
To reduce habituation and stay safe in national parks, it's always advisable to keep a safe distance from wildlife. This is safer for the animals, humans, and the ecosystem.
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Yes 👍 Those who viewed the video flocked to the comments, angry that the parents allowed the child to torment the ducks.
"The parents are the ones responsible for not teaching this child to stay away from wild animals," wrote one commenter.
Another stated plainly: "This is an awesome lesson to learn at a young age."
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