Sharing animal sightings: Yellowstone app
A cinnamon-colored black bear uses a tree as a back scratcher near Lost Creek in Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. (May 19, 2006) Credit: AP
Pretty soon, the best place to be on the lookout for a wolf, grizzly bear or other wildlife in Yellowstone National Park could be your phone.
Just don't be surprised if lots of other people get the same idea.
New smartphone apps enable people to pinpoint where they've recently seen critters in Yellowstone. Other people can then drive to those places for a wildlife viewing experience that otherwise wouldn't happen except for the luck of being in the right place at the right time.
One app, called Where's a Bear, promises "up to the second" animal sightings in Yellowstone. A website called Yellowstone Wildlife offers a similar app. Park officials say apps could become a concern if they contribute to the traffic jams that occur when wildlife linger near roadsides.
