Overview
- A black wolf wearing a tracking collar trailed hiker Ignazio Zanin for roughly 10 to 12 minutes along the Lamar River Trail before he altered his route toward the highway.
- The encounter was filmed through a spotting scope by visitor Deric Smith and the video was shared online, where it quickly went viral.
- Zanin stayed calm, used bear spray at least twice to push the wolf back, and reported no injuries after the animal retreated to a distance.
- Yellowstone National Park public affairs and on‑scene rangers told the visitor that some wolves in Lamar Valley are comfortable around people and described this episode as curiosity rather than aggression.
- The wolf's collar indicates ongoing monitoring by researchers and the episode highlights how habituation in popular wolf‑viewing areas can increase close human‑wildlife encounters and reinforce the need to carry and know how to use aversive tools like bear spray.