![\"Wyoming\u2019s](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Grizzly-399-and-spirit-8.23.23.jpeg\")
Wyoming\u2019s beloved Grizzly 399, her cub of the year, Spirit in August 2023. (Courtesy Roam Wild Photo Tours)Grizzly 399\u2019s Legacy Captures Hearts<\/strong><\/p>\nOn Sunday, social media posts declaring that Spirit had been officially identified through DNA testing had many in Grizzly 399\u2019s worldwide fanbase rejoicing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The outpouring of joy was understandable. Grizzly 399 was Wyoming\u2019s most famous and beloved bear, and Spirit was the last cub she had.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mangelsen followed Grizzly 399 and her various cubs for years. His photographs were key in establishing her as the \u201cQueen of the Tetons.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A\u00a0documentary movie<\/a>\u00a0bearing that title about Grizzly 399\u2019s life was released in early 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n The movie centered on the period when Grizzly 399 was raising her unprecedented litter of quadruplets, which were born in 2020 and separated from their mother in 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n Grizzly 399 wasn\u2019t done.\u00a0<\/p>\n In May 2023, the bear-watching world was again overjoyed when she emerged from hibernation with\u00a0a new cub<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mangelsen dubbed the cub Spirit, and people were in awe of how quickly and huge it grew.\u00a0<\/p>\n Observers surmised that Spirit was huge because the cub was probably a male. Plus, he didn\u2019t have any littermates to compete with for mother\u2019s milk and other food.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hearts were broken in October 2024 when Grizzly 399 was struck and killed by a vehicle south of Jackson.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sprit was reportedly with her at the time of the accident, and fled the scene unharmed.<\/p>\n Mangelsen said he thinks the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are partly to blame for Grizzly 399\u2019s death.\u00a0<\/p>\n It was know for at least 36 hours before the accident that Grizzly 399 and Spirit had been feeding on roadkill, but the agencies did nothing to protect the famous bears, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n There have been no verified sightings of Spirit since the accident.<\/p>\n Grizzly 399\u2019s fans have held out hope that the cub survived. Fold said that after having had two summers to learn from his (or her) mother, Spirit was capable of finding a hibernation den and surviving the winter alone.<\/p>\n As spring 2025 gave way to summer \u2014 with no sign of Spirit \u2014 it was widely thought that\u00a0it was time to give up<\/a>\u00a0on ever seeing Spirit again.\u00a0<\/p>\n False Hopes<\/strong><\/p>\n A spark of hope turned into a flame when it was unofficially announced that a grizzly research term confirmed that the bear officially dubbed \u201cGrizzly 1148\u201d was indeed Spirit \u2014 and a female.\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s only partly true, Grand Teton National Park Spokeswoman Emily Davis told Cowboy State Daily on Monday.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDuring routine research capture operations in Grand Teton National Park, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (IGBST) handled a\u00a02-year-old female grizzly bear in June,\u201d she aid.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFollowing strict safety and animal care guidelines, biologists checked the bear\u2019s body condition, collected DNA samples, and fitted her with a GPS-radio collar. The bear was assigned GB1148 (Grizzly 1148),\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Going by the standard timeline, results from the bear\u2019s DNA \u201cwill not be available for some time,\u201d Davis added.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWithout DNA confirmation, we cannot say who this bear is related to, including whether it is an offspring of grizzly 399,\u201d Davis said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The IGBST captures, examines and takes samples from grizzlies to help guide conservation and management of grizzlies across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.<\/p>\n Davis added that a photo of a sedated bear being examined by biologists that ran with some social media posts declaring it to be Spirit also isn\u2019t accurate.\u00a0<\/p>\n It was \u201cnot a contemporary photo and is likely from many years ago,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Game and Fish large carnivore specialist Dan Thompson told Cowboy State Daily that his agency wasn\u2019t directly involved with the capture and examination of Grizzly 1148.\u00a0<\/p>\n However, he confirmed that \u201cinteresting rumblings\u201d had reached his ears regarding the rumor that Grizzly 1148 is Spirit, though the rumors turned out to be false.\u00a0<\/p>\n Questions Left Unanswered\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Mangelsen said if DNA results reveal that the bear in question is related to Grizzly 399, then Grizzly 1148\u2019s\u00a02-year-old demographic could lend credence to the idea that she is, in fact, Spirit.\u00a0<\/p>\n Confirmation of Grizzly 1148\u2019s paternal roots would help too, he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI would like to know\u00a0who is the father? If it were Bruno, it would be more convincing,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n