This story was updated Wednesday evening to reflect the sheriffs response and another photographer's perspective.
The famous grizzly bear 399 was struck and killed Tuesday evening, Oct. 22, by a car in the Snake River Canyon south of Jackson on Highway 26.
At age 28, she was the oldest known reproducing female in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE). Photos of the popular mama bear and her cubs circulated the world.
“It's just really surreal,” said one local photographer, Sue Cedarholm, who captured pictures of grizzly bear 399 for almost 20 years. “She's an old bear, and we knew her time was coming to an end, but you just hate to have it be with a car accident.”
She urged people to remember grizzly 399’s legacy. She was the first roadside bear in the Tetons, raising her many cubs in and around Grand Teton National Park.
“She raised so much awareness for bears and grizzly bears,” Cedarholm said. “So I think we have to remember how lucky we were to have her in our lives and what a great bear she was.”
399 was the inspiration of a career for Wilson native Syler Peralta-Ramos. Early one morning, before he could drive himself, Peralta-Ramos, 26, convinced his dad to drive him into Grand Teton National Park. They were north of Pilgrim Creek when Peralta-Ramos saw her across the road: 399 with two yearlings.
“She was the first grizzly bear I ever saw. And the first grizzly bears that I ever got to photograph,” Peralta-Ramos said. “The pictures were terrible, but I remember it really distinctly as this being such a special moment to see her and see her with cubs.”
Peralta-Ramos has since served as apprentice of Tom Mangelsen’s, the region’s most famous wildlife photographer, and currently works part-time in Mangelsen’s editing office. Recalling words Mangelsen said years ago in an interview, Peralta-Ramos said 399 had taught humans what it means to coexist with wildlife.
“She's redefined a species that has traditionally been really vilified,” he said, “and shown us that we have a lot more in common with them than I think a lot of people believe.”
399 will continue to be a symbol of human’s relationship to the natural world, Peralta-Ramos said.
“Even though she is gone, I don't think that this is the end of her story.”
Authorities confirmed her identity by an ear tag and a microchip. According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife, her year-old cub was with her but his location is now unknown.
Lincoln County sheriffs responded to a collision with a Subaru, model not reported, around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday evening after the bear entered the driver's lane of travel, according to an incident report. The driver was reported to be fine and not cited. The speed limit in that section is posted at 55 miles per hour.
Lincoln County Sheriff Captain Brian Andrews said it was “unusual” for a grizzly to be hit in that section. He called it a “freak accident.”
It’s the second grizzly death from a vehicle collision this year. On average, about three die in vehicle crashes annually in the GYE.
Highway 26 where 399 was killed is notorious for wildlife collisions. The state recently applied for funding to build wildlife crossings along that stretch.
Melodie Edwards contributed to this story.
