Published July 14, 2026
The Bison Tossing Man In Yellowstone Video shows a bull bison charging an elderly tourist at Bridge Bay Campground and flipping him roughly 8 feet into the air. Filmed by photographer Mike MacLeod on July 10, 2026, the clip spread across Facebook, X, Reddit, and YouTube within days, drawing tens of millions of views and spawning remixes, jokes, and fan art.
Overview
Bison Tossing Man In Yellowstone Video, also called Man Gets Tossed by Bison, Bison Throws Man in Yellowstone, or Bison Attacks Old Man in Yellowstone, is a viral clip captured at Yellowstone National Park in mid-July 2026[1]. The footage shows an agitated bull bison charging at an older tourist inside Bridge Bay Campground and flipping him high into the air before he crashes back to the ground. The victim was later identified as Carl Isom-McDaniel, who according to reports suffered multiple broken bones but survived the attack[3].
The video was shot by Mike MacLeod, a professional photographer from Bozeman, Montana, and a former Army combat photographer, who was staying at the same campground when the animal appeared[1]. MacLeod kept filming from a safe distance as the bison moved through the campsites and charged a group of children taking cellphone photos, who scattered safely[1]. The animal later wallowed in a dirt patch before targeting the older man, walking with his grandson at more than 100 yards away[2]. The mid-air moment of impact, paired with reactions across Facebook, X, and Reddit, drove heavy remix activity and news coverage throughout mid-July 2026[4].
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Origin & Background
The attack took place on the evening of Friday, July 10, 2026, at Bridge Bay Campground, south of Fishing Bridge in Yellowstone National Park[1]. Mike MacLeod grabbed his camera after his wife pointed out the bull bison entering the area, and started shooting from a distance as the animal moved between campsites[2]. It then charged a group of kids taking photos, who scattered safely, before wandering off to a dirt patch to lie down and appear to settle[1].
The victim, Carl Isom-McDaniel, was walking along a road with his grandson at what MacLeod described as at least a 100-yard distance when the bison suddenly stood up and ran at them[1]. MacLeod posted the clip to his Facebook page just after midnight on July 11, and the initial upload picked up more than 626,000 views, 1,600 reactions, and 30 comments within two days[2]. Around 11 a.m. EST the same day, he shared a still image of the man mid-flip, which drew over 10,400 reactions and 3,300 shares in the same window[2].
How It Spread
The full footage was picked up by news outlet Cowboy State Daily and published in an article headlined "Tourist Seriously Injured After Yellowstone Bison Launches Man 8 Feet In The Air" on July 11, 2026[1]. Their YouTube upload of the clip pulled in more than 893,500 views, 3,000 likes, and 980 comments over the next two days[1]. Late on July 11, MacLeod added another video to Facebook showing the bison tearing through the campground before the attack, drawing about 1,100 reactions and 400 shares over the following two days[2].
On X, the clip took off after user Mollyploofkins reposted the charge-and-hit moment on July 11, racking up 53.3 million views, 56,000 likes, and 2,800 replies within two days[4]. A day later, X user magills_ posted a sped-up edit scored to "Yakety Sax," better known as the "Benny Hill Theme," which pulled 4.4 million views and 15,000 likes in a single day[5]. Around the same time, Lizzs_Lockeroom quote-tweeted a post about the attack with the 2020 clip of NBC Montana reporter Deion Broxton fleeing from bison, and the tweet cleared 4.7 million views and 57,000 likes[6].
Reddit picked up the story on July 12, when the video was reposted to r/interestingasfuck and drew over 69,000 upvotes and 5,400 comments in a single day[7]. Artist Travis Chapman then painted the moment of impact and shared it on X on July 13, pulling nearly 200,000 views and 11,000 likes in about six hours[8]. He cross-posted the piece to r/Paintings the same day, where it earned over 300 upvotes and 50 comments in the same window[9].
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X
How to Use This Meme
The clip is typically used as a reaction video for scenes of unexpected calamity, or as a punchline about tourists ignoring wildlife safety warnings[3]. Common conventions include speeding up the footage, pairing it with slapstick soundtracks like "Yakety Sax," and captioning stills of the mid-air moment with jokes about karma, physics lessons, or ruined vacations[5]. Some remixes lean into the "national parks are not petting zoos" angle, splicing the clip with older Yellowstone signage or ranger warnings for extra bite[6].
Cultural Impact
The Bison Tossing Man In Yellowstone Video moved from campground eyewitness footage to national coverage within a day, driven by Cowboy State Daily's early write-up and YouTube upload[1]. MacLeod's professional-quality framing gave the story an unusually clean clip for broadcast, and by July 12 the footage was being paired with older wildlife-safety stories, including the widely-shared 2020 Deion Broxton bison retreat clip[6]. Discussion threads on Reddit and X mixed genuine concern for the victim with jokes about tourist behavior around Yellowstone wildlife, echoing years of similar incidents at the park[7].
Fun Facts
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Mike MacLeod is a former US Army combat photographer, which he credited for helping him track the animal's movement through the campground[1]
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The bison had already charged a group of children taking cellphone photos earlier that evening; they scattered safely[1]
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MacLeod's Facebook still image of the mid-flip moment pulled over 10,400 reactions and 3,300 shares in two days[2]
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Reporter Deion Broxton's 2020 bison retreat clip resurfaced alongside the video as a running joke[6]
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Artist Travis Chapman turned the moment into a painting that hit nearly 200,000 X views in six hours[8]
Derivatives & Variations
Sped-up "Benny Hill" edit by magills_ pairing the clip with "Yakety Sax"[5]
Deion Broxton bison reporter mashup shared by Lizzs_Lockeroom[6]
Travis Chapman's painting of the man being flipped, shared on X and r/Paintings[8]
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a viral July 2026 clip of a bull bison charging an elderly tourist at Yellowstone's Bridge Bay Campground and flipping him about 8 feet into the air[1].
Photographer Mike MacLeod recorded the incident on the evening of July 10, 2026, and posted it to Facebook just after midnight on July 11[2].
Online, the clip works as a reaction video for sudden calamity and a punchline about tourists underestimating wildlife in US national parks[3].
People typically share sped-up remixes, pair the footage with slapstick tracks like "Yakety Sax," or caption stills of the mid-air moment with jokes about karma and ruined vacations[5].
Yes, it was trending across X, Reddit, and Facebook in mid-July 2026, with individual reposts pulling tens of millions of views[4].
