Can the Queen of the Tetons Protect Her Heirs?

By Jorn Vangoidtsenhoven

Traffic comes to a grinding halt when a grizzly bear appears near a road in Wyoming's Grand Teton or Yellowstone National Parks. Hundreds of cars get stuck in the gridlock appropriately called "bear jam." It can go on for miles - and hours.

Everyone's heart rate goes up with the hope of spotting one of these legendary predators. Seeing a wild grizzly is the seminal moment of many family vacations in these parks.

Seven Hundred Grizzly Bears, But Only One is Royalty

THE ATTENTIVE QUEEN AND ONE OF HER FOUR SPRING 2020 CUBS. ACCORDING TO THE USFWS, MORE THAN HALF OF ALL GRIZZLY CUBS WILL NOT MAKE IT TO BREEDING AGE. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

✔︎ TRIP TIPS

Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, Wyoming
When: April - May, September - November for fewest crowds.
Who: All ages but make sure the whole family understands and follows Park safety rules.
How: Fly / drive. Closest airport: Yellowstone, West Yellowstone, Mt.
Tips: Prepare for all 4 seasons

Among the estimated 730 grizzlies that live in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem, there is a single bear that has become nothing less than an international celebrity. This bear, officially identified as "399", is otherwise known as the Queen of the Tetons.

Born in the winter of 1996, grizzly 399 turned 24 this year. Seeing that these bears have an estimated lifespan in the wild of up to 25 years, this Queen is no spring chicken. Her advanced years made it an even bigger surprise when, in June, following a long and brutal winter during which the area received 11 feet (3.35m) of snow and temperatures dipped down to minus 25 F (minus 31 C), 399 emerged from her den with no less than four new cubs in tow!

FOUR CUBS DELIVERED BY A 24-YO GRIZZLY SOW IS UNPRECEDENTED. 399 HAS PROVEN HERSELF TO BE QUITE A MOM. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

The Federal Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team has never seen a set of four from a sow of 399's age. This impressive feat is more astonishing since the oldest known grizzly in the area to give birth to any cubs at all was 27, only three years older than our Queen.

A Good Monarch has a Strategy

DEFENSELESS AND CURIOUS, THE LITTLE CUBS ARE OBLIVIOUS TO THREATS AS THEY EXPLORE THER WORLD. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

399 is unusual in another way, too. Whereas a typical grizzly chooses to live its life in the backcountry, far away from human activity, 399 has chosen to spend at least part of her's close to humans.

Some experts think this is a deliberate strategy to keep her cubs safe. They believe that 399, like a few other grizzly sows in the area, chooses to raise her cubs near roadsides and developed areas to keep them safe from male grizzlies (boars). The males are known to kill cubs to stop the sow lactating and propel her back into reproduction mode.

FOUR RAMBUNCTIOUS CUBS ARE A HANDFUL FOR EVEN AN EXPERIENCED MOM LIKE 399. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

And An Even Disposition Also Helps

Raising her cubs within relatively easy visibility near the Park's roads may keep the cubs safer; still, it also makes 399 and similar bears nothing less than magnets for delighted tourists and photographers.

Even so, Grizzly 399, estimated to weigh in at 350 pounds (158kg) and stand 7-feet (2.13m) tall on her hind legs, has had only one close encounter with a visitor in her 24 years. Or at least, only one during which she made contact; little doubt that she has had other surprise encounters with (sometimes reckless) visitors.

RAISING YOUR CUBS DELIBERATELY NEAR PEOPLE FOR THEIR SAFETY TAKES A CALM AND EVEN-TEMPERED GRIZZLY MOM. BUT EVEN THE QUEEN HAS HER LIMITS. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

The incident happened in 2007. A school teacher taking a walk near the Park's Jackson Lake Lodge, inadvertently surprised 399 and her cubs while they were feeding on an elk carcass. 399 charged and bit the teacher before retreating. (The man, shaken-up but fine, admitted he startled the bear) Luckily, 399 was spared because she acted as nature intended in defense of her cubs.

Heirs are Not An Indicator of Survival

EVEN AS SHE ENJOYS A MOMENT OF CALM, GRIZZLY 399 IS LOOKING OUT FOR THE KIDS. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

In her life span so far, 399 is believed to be responsible for at least 22 descendants, including the offspring of a single daughter, the grizzly sow identified by the federal Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team as 610. Up to now, 610 is the only one of 399's adult offspring known to have produced her own cubs.

Twenty-two descendants is an impressive record, but not as rosy as it sounds. Did you know that an estimated 85% of grizzlies never make it to 399's age?

There are No Guarantees In the Wild

HER CUBS, HOPEFULLY ALL FOUR, WILL STAY WITH 399 FOR TWO-TO-THREE YEARS BEFORE THEY ARE FULLY ABLE TO CARE FOR THEMSELVES. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

About half of her offspring are believed to have already died.There is the sad story of her daughter, grizzly 615, who was shot by a poacher. Others, like her only 2016 cub, "snowy," were killed by cars. And more are believed to have been killed by male grizzlies.

In the animal kingdom, even when you are at the top of the food chain, life isn't easy or guaranteed

Grizzly 610, the Queen's daughter, is also regularly seen in Grand Teton National Park. Born as one of 399's triplets in 2006, grizzly 610 is currently caring for two yearling cubs, and, like a fairy tale, she is still close to her mother.

An Unusual Mother / Daughter Relationship

A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, GRIZZLY 399 AND HER DAUGHTER 610 AND ALL SIX OF THIS SEASON’S CUBS SPENT ABOUT 90 MINUTES TOGETHER IN FIELD OF SAGE. FROM ALL ACCOUNTS, THE LITTLE “COUSINS” SEEMED TO ENJOY THE FAMILY REUNION. IMAGE: THANKS TO ©JACK BAYLES PHOTOG… — A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, GRIZZLY 399 AND HER DAUGHTER 610 AND ALL SIX OF THIS SEASON’S CUBS SPENT ABOUT 90 MINUTES TOGETHER IN FIELD OF SAGE. FROM ALL ACCOUNTS, THE LITTLE “COUSINS” SEEMED TO ENJOY THE FAMILY REUNION. IMAGE: THANKS TO ©JACK BAYLES PHOTOGRAPHY.

Contrary to popular belief that grizzly sows with cubs are aggressive towards other adult bears, this past June, 399 with her four cubs and 610 with her two cubs were seen meeting each other in Grand Teton National Park. The bears both recognized each other, and the six cubs even played together!

This incident was not the first time these adult female bears were seen together. In 2011, when 399 had triplets, and 610 had twins, 610 willingly adopted one of her mother's cubs. 610 ended up raising triplets while 399 continued to care for her two remaining cubs!

Bear-Bedlam Begats a Brigade

THE ANTICS OF 399’S CUBS AND OTHERS’ DRAW TOURISTS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD, CAUSING THE NEED FOR CONSTANT OVERSIGHT OF THE HUMANS. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

Back to the Side of the Road. As you can imagine, things occasionally get crazy during a bear jam, [you may have read in a previous post] seeing these bears and their adorable cubs (and other wildlife) can be the experience of a lifetime. Still, sometimes people seem to forget that these are wild animals and that the National Park is not a petting zoo.

The Park realized it had to do something when in 2007, grizzly 399 emerged from her den with three cubs to wild popularity. Since then, Grand Teton National Park has employed a select group of volunteers called the "Grand Teton Wildlife Brigade". Their mission is to keep the wildlife and the tourists safe, for example, by enforcing the minimum required distance of 100 yards from bears and wolves, and 25 yards from the Park's other animals. In speaking with some of these volunteers, it is clear that managing wildlife isn't the problem ... it's managing the people.

Celebrity is Not Synonymous with Safety

EVEN A 350 POUND, EXPERIENCED, AND ATTENTIVE MOM LIKE 399 CANNOT PROTECT HER OFFSPRING, OR HERSELF, FROM EVERY NATURE OR HUMAN-MADE THREAT. IMAGE: ©JORN VANGOIDTSENHOVEN

As you can read in my earlier article on grizzlies in the Tetons (published by publication Destination: Wildlife in 2019), the future is by no means guaranteed for these extraordinary creatures.

In addition to the 'usual' dangers, like collisions with cars, or running into trouble in human neighborhoods or violent encounters with other bears, there is the ever-looming threat of trophy hunters turning these magnificent bears into a wall ornament or a living room rug.

The harsh reality is that were it not for the single judge who halted the trophy hunt recently, 399, and other "celebrity" bears may well have ended up dead by now. Rumor has it that trophy hunters are ready to target the famous Queen as 'the ultimate trophy'... Remember Cecil, the lion in Africa, or Romeo, the grey wolf in Juneau, Alaska?

I find it mind-blowing that the Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously to approve the grizzly hunt. They voted this way even with millions of dollars streaming into Wyoming's state coffers every year thanks to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Park, substantially due to the popularity of those same grizzlies.

The Commission, appointed by the governor, is a stark reminder to all of us to choose our elected officials wisely and to go further than merely asking which candidate is red, blue, or independent. The Queen, and all our wildlife, will be grateful.