Being daring is one thing, but a tenacious coyote took it to a whole new level this week, biting one of Wyoming’s most famous grizzlies on the butt — without getting torn to shreds.
“It was definitely interesting to watch,” said wildlife photographer Tammy Neufeld, who got video of the encounter. “That coyote would not give up. It was like, ‘This is my spot, and you need to leave.’”
Bravery In Vain
The interaction happened Monday at Oxbow Bend on the Snake River in Grand Teton National Park.
Grizzly 610, a female offspring of Wyoming’s beloved Grizzly 399, found a food stash — likely dead fish — that apparently belonged to three coyotes, and started helping herself two it Neufeld told Cowboy State Daily.
The coyotes didn’t appreciate that at all, but only one of them was brave enough to try doing something about it, Neufeld said.
Over the course of about 40 minutes, Neufeld got video of the coyote on at least two occasions creeping up behind the gorging grizzly and chomping at her backside.
Grizzly 610 can be seen whirling around, but not quickly enough to sink her teeth or claws into the coyote as it nimbly flees.
The coyote’s efforts were valiant, but ineffective, Neufeld said. Grizzly 610 eventually left on her own accord, and only after eating her fill.
A Famous Momma Bear In Her Own Right
Grizzly 610 is one of the many offspring of the world’s most famous bear, Grizzly 399. Grizzly 610 has gone on to have numerous cubs of her own.
Grizzly 399 was struck and killed by a vehicle on Highway 26/89 south of Jackson in Lincoln County in October 2024.
About a year earlier in October 2023, Grizzly 610 nearly suffered the same fate.
She was struck by a semitruck along a stretch of U.S. Highway 89 that runs through Teton National Park between Buffalo Valley and Moran Junction. She languished in pain by the roadside for hours.
She had three cubs at the time, which watched her from a distance. The mother grizzly eventually got up and walked away with her cubs, having apparently not suffered any long-term injuries.
Grizzly 610 separated from her most recent cubs last spring, and hasn’t been spotted with any cubs this spring, Neufeld said.
“We all expected her to come out with new cubs this year, but she doesn’t have any,” she said.
However, the bear looks to be thriving and in excellent health, she added.
No Coyote Story Is Surprising
It’s not surprising that a coyote had the audacity to nip at Grizzly 610, retired biologist Franz Camenzind of Jackson told Cowboy State Daily.
Coyotes are intelligent, resourceful and willing to do whatever it takes to survive, said Camenzind, who studied coyote behavior in and around the National Elk Refuge near Jackson.
“I’m not surprised by just about any coyote story I hear,” he said.
Grizzlies and coyotes frequently share habitat and sometimes compete for food, he said.
They clash from time to time, and grizzlies usually prevail.
“A grizzly doesn’t see a coyote as a big challenge,” Camenzind said. “A wolf, or two wolves, they might see that as a serious threat. But a coyote is just more of an annoyance.”
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
