Tragic news for our favorite grizzly bear family

In the spring of 2020, a mother grizzly known as “Bear 399” emerged from her den with four rambunctious cubs in tow, and the country fell in love.

Visitors flocked to Grand Teton National Park to catch a glimpse of the blissful family as Bear 399 raised her four roly poly cubs into capable young adults. By the time the cubs went off on their own in spring 2022, park rangers and admirers had high hopes for their futures.

But instead the family has been struck by one tragedy after another.

First, one of the cubs was euthanized after becoming too habituated to humans. Then Bear 399 herself was hit and killed by a car. And just last month, another member of the famous litter, “Bear 1058,” met the same fate as his mother when he was struck by a vehicle.

Bear 399 and her offspring should still be roaming across the wilds of Wyoming and Montana, but this family’s sad story shows how much work still has to be done in the name of grizzly bear recovery.

Grizzly bears in the Lower 48 have come a long way since 1975 when they were granted protection under the Endangered Species Act. But they continue to struggle as humans intrude onto their natural habitat.

A devastating 85% of grizzlies are killed by humans before reaching old age.

Many of these deaths are caused by car accidents, as highways often slice through bear territories and long established wildlife migration paths and leave no safe ways to cross. Between 2009 and 2023 alone, 49 grizzly bears were killed in vehicle collisions.

Of the 18 offspring Bear 399 raised over the course of her life, 11 have died. And even now, politicians from states including Montana and Wyoming are currently working to pass legislation that would legalize the hunting of these precious bears.

While their mother and brothers have died, it’s believed the other two cubs from the quad litter are still alive.

We must secure a better future for these two young grizzlies and their brethren across the Lower 48.

That’s why we’re calling on Wildlife Services to stop killing grizzlies, campaigning for continued protection of grizzlies under the Endangered Species Act, and organizing to establish more wildlife crossings to prevent the accidents that killed Bears 399 and 1058.

In those two years where Bear 399 and her quadruplets lived together, we got a glimpse into a potential future — one where grizzly bears can raise their families in ease and safety. Now it’s time to make that future a reality.