How do the bison feel about the government shutdown? Pretty itchy, it seems. (Via @radleybalko.)

Oil wells and sheet-metal buildings are hideous things, but America the Beautiful resumes as soon as you get past the last grim RV park and last signs of our shoddy civilization. The easiest way to refresh the soul is to look on the map for a big chunk of green: a national park or preserve or forest, or in the case…

In case you needed yet another reason not to taunt animals 10 times larger than you, here you go: A man visiting Antelope Island State Park in Utah provoked a 1500 pound bison and the bison, being a bison, rammed the man into a nearby fence.

As if the hantavirus outbreak in Yosemite wasn't enough to keep you inside and away from national parks forever, now comes news that wild bison in Yellowstone are charging innocent children. As the Daily Mail, England's paper of record, notes, the child was encouraged by his parents to approach the bison, who was…

This is the greatest food recall since Kellogg's stinky cereal fiasco: 66,000 pounds of bison meat were recalled because they may contain a deadly strain of E. coli. Add bison meat to the list of ungrillable things. [CNN]