Yellowstone Bison Calf

A herd of bison grazes in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park on Aug. 3, 2016. Yellowstone National Park officials say they had to kill a newborn bison because its herd wouldn’t take the animal back after a man picked it up. 

 Matthew Brown/Associated Press file photo

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. — A man who picked up a bison calf in Yellowstone National Park caused it to be shunned by its herd, prompting park officials to kill the animal rather than allow it to be a hazard to visitors.

Park officials quickly defended the decision to kill the newborn bison.

“We made the choice we did not because we are lazy, uncaring or inexpert in our understanding of bison biology. We made the choice we did because national parks preserve natural processes,” the park said in a statement posted Tuesday on Twitter.

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