Grief over the death of Wyoming’s Grizzly 399 was tempered by hope that her cub, Spirit, might survive on his own – but even if he did, would anybody still recognize him?
It might be impossible to distinguish Spirit from any other 2-year-old grizzly, some bear experts said.
A best guess might come down to location, renowned wildlife photographer Tom Mangelsen told Cowboy State Daily.
“If we see a single larger-than-average 2-year-old, one may guess he is Spirit, especially in same home territory as 399,” said Mangelsen – who closely followed Grizzly 399 and her numerous cubs over the years.
Outgrowing The ‘Tuxedo’
Worldwide fans of Grizzly 399 were thrilled when she emerged from hibernation with a new cub in May of 2023.
Various names for the new arrival were suggested, but the most widely-accepted was Spirit, given to the cub by Mangelsen.
The cub’s sex was never determined for certain. But given its exceptional size, Spirit was widely assumed to be a male.
As a young cub, he had a “tuxedo” collar – or a distinctive white marking on his upper chest. However, as grizzlies tend to do, Spirit lost that marking as he grew.
“They outgrow the tuxedo. Maybe half of cubs have that natal collar. It’s usually gone after a few months,” Mangelsen said.
Mangelsen and others noted that Spirit doesn’t have any other distinguishing marks.
“I looked at some of my Spirit pictures and I didn't see any clear things to identify Spirit by,” Wyoming Wildlife photographer Jorn Vangoidtsenhoven told Cowboy State Daily.
“No obvious scars. And, since Spirit is still growing and will be at least six months older if he's seen again this spring. I doubt we'll be able to use color markings,” he added.
Wildlife photographer Savannah Rose told Cowboy State Daily that she remains hopeful that Spirit can be identified.
“We would just have to guess based on appearance. There’s no way to know for sure unless he’s collared and tagged. I think we would know, though,” she said.
Many hope that Spirit, the last cub of Grizzly 399, is still alive and will emerge from hibernation this spring. (Courtesy Jorn Vangoidtsenhoven) 
Many hope that Spirit, the last cub of Grizzly 399, is still alive and will emerge from hibernation this spring. (Courtesy Jorn Vangoidtsenhoven)
Grizzlies Only Just Waking Up
Spirit was thought to have been with Grizzly 399 when she was struck and killed by a vehicle in October of 2024.
The cub apparently fled the scene unharmed.
Technically, Spirit wouldn’t be ready to separate from his mother until this summer, when he would be well past two years old.
However, at the time of Grizzly 399’s death, many observers thought that the cub was mature enough to stand a chance good chance of finding a hibernation den and striking out on his own this spring.
Grizzlies have only just started to emerge this year. And as usual, it is large, fully-mature males that are coming out first.
Two-year-old bears are still considered juveniles and don’t usually start coming out of their dens until a little later.
Like Mangelsen, Vangoidtsenhoven said a particular location might be the best clue for finding Spirit.
“Perhaps the location, Pilgrim Creek, will be the best, or only, indicator, if a single bear were to be hanging out there starting in April or May,” he said.
Genetic Testing?
Many might speculate that they’ve spotted Spirit as spring progresses into summer. But genetic testing would be the only way to know for sure, Wyoming Game and Fish large carnivore specialist Dan Thompson told Cowboy State Daily.
“It would be difficult to impossible to definitively state any solitary two-year-old in the vicinity is, in fact, that particular bear, but I would guarantee there are many people that feel otherwise,” he said.
“Some of the people that habitually follow certain bears may have distinguishing characteristics that they feel differentiate, but without a genetic sample it would still be speculation unless there are obvious diagnostic differences. It will be an interesting scenario to watch play out in the next few months,” Thompson added.
Mangelsen agreed that genetic testing would be the only way to tell for sure. But he doesn’t want any bears trapped for that.
“If one could gather scat of that bear or hair it could get DNA from him only way to be sure. In my opinion I wouldn’t try and trap any bears period for that reason, and I’m not keen on any trapping of any more bears in the park (Grand Teton National Park) period,” he said.
“It’s redundant information and dangerous, and also stressful and pretty annoying to bears and tourist who assume a collared bear is a trouble bear. Game and Fish and USFWS (Fish and Wildlife Service) want to trap so they can use numbers to get them off the endangered species list, so they can be hunted,” Mangelsen added.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
