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399 is the numeric name given to her by researchers with the famed Yellowstone Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team.
Age: 27
Weight: nearly 400 pounds
Birthdate/place: Winter 1996 at den site in the wilds of Pilgrim Creek, Wyoming
Territory: Hundreds of square miles in Jackson Hole, including the Grand Teton National Park and Bridger-Teton National Forest.
Offspring: 18 cubs have been born since 2004.
Current Status: Cub of the year (COY), one.
The Matriarch - Grizzly 399 Known only by her research number, Grizzly 399 has been a fixture in Grand Teton National Park since 2007, becoming the world’s most famous—and photographed—grizzly bear in the world. Now 399 is raising four new cubs in the face of human encroachment, a warming climate, and the threat of losing protection under the Endangered Species Act. Witness a riveting story full of twists and turns, hope and heartbreak in NATURE—Grizzly 399: Queen of the Tetons, premiering Wednesday, May 8 at 8/7c on PBS.
NATURE is an award-winning signature PBS series focusing on natural history and wildlife, showcasing documentaries and episodes that explore various aspects of the natural world. The program covers a wide range of topics, from animal behavior and habitats to environmental issues and conservation efforts.
Grizzly 399, the most famous bear in Grand Teton National Park, has an exceptional litter of four cubs to raise. Every day, the family must contend with threats to their survival, including a warming climate and human encroachment in bear country. Now the stakes are higher than ever as Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana seek to remove grizzlies from the endangered species list—which would make it legal to hunt them. In a riveting story full of twists and turns, hope and heartbreak, Grizzly 399 stands as a symbol of the clash between humans and the wild.
This feature-length documentary film is a collaboration with Lucky 8. It is a unique combination of Mangelsen’s extensive archive of photographs, videos, Todd Wilkinson’s writings, and interviews featuring numerous people who share a deep affection for 399.
Thank you for your support of 399: Queen of the Tetons and grizzly bear conservation. This is only the beginning! The producers of the film have assured me it will be shown at more film festivals and special screenings in the future.
Back in May 2006—Mangelsen caught his first glimpse of 399 when she and her youngsters, born underground the previous winter, were feasting on a moose carcass on the island shore of the Oxbow Bend of the Snake River.
“I saw her briefly in the evening just before dark,” he said. It was a fleeting encounter, but still extraordinary. She was there and then gone, vanishing into the black ether of night. He felt no connection and had no idea how profoundly this bear and her cubs would change his life, stealing his commitment to conservation. “It wasn’t until spring the following year that I spent any significant time getting to know her,” he said.
Thomas D. Mangelsen’s personal and professional legacy is inseparable from his love of Grizzly 399. As one of the first people to set eyes on the bear 14 years before, he documented her life history as she pioneered the return of grizzlies to the southern reaches of the Greater Yellowstone. By Syler Peralta-Ramos/Peninsula Press
399: Portrait of a LegendEmerging with her 18th cub as part of a historic legendary life, 399 is 27, long in the tooth and still transforming our perceptions of grizzlies. Now it’s our turn to be on best behavior. By Todd Wilkinson.
Written by Todd Wilkinson. Foreword by Anderson Cooper. Thomas D. Mangelsen presents a sequel to the award-winning book Grizzlies of Pilgrim Creek. This new book showcases a new body of images and an updated story capturing the last eight years of the famous mother bear.
Grizzly 399 was born in 1996, and has demonstrated the importance of a healthy female bear to the overall population. At least 24 bears are descended from her, both cubs and cubs of her cubs (i.e. grandchildren).
Grizzly bears typically give birth to single or twin cubs, but 399 is not a typical bear. She has given birth to multiple sets of triplets and most recently, quadruplets.
Always on a vigilant lookout, Grizzly 399 sniffs the breeze as she leads her cubs through a meadow of spring’s newly flowering biscuit root.
This famous bear has raised her broods by roadsides in view of groups of curious humans. “399’s popularity speaks to a yearning humans have to feel connected to wild nature. The fact that her life and death saga has played out in the backyard of the West makes it more special because Americans can see the benefit of safeguarding rare animals,” Mangelsen says.
Grizzly 399 emerged from her den with a single cub in tow, vastly different from her previous three litters which were all triplets.
399 and her two cubs are busy foraging for food to fatten up as they prepare for their long winter slumber
Besides her prominence as a mother giving her offspring the skills to navigate a complicated world, she is a poster child for the value of wildlife conservation.
Featuring over 150 captivating images by Thomas D. Mangelsen and a riveting narrative by American writer Todd Wilkinson, Grizzlies of Pilgrim Creek is a compelling study of the most famous bears in the world and the threats they face. Grizzlies need us now more than ever.
Watch as Thomas D. Mangelsen takes to the air in search of Grizzly 399 in the Teton Wilderness. Two weeks later she and her tiny triplets make their first appearance near Pilgrim Creek in Grand Teton National Park.
Grizzly 399 became famous in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, as she raised three cubs near the roads of the park during the summers of 2006 and 2007, giving thousands the opportunity to observe the family in the wild. The spring of 2011, she again emerged with another set of triplets. Watch as the three new cubs play in a meadow of Grand Teton National Park under their mother’’s watchful eye.
From Tom’s 17 years of documenting these extraordinary bears.
Mangelsen unveils this spectacular image of 399 and tells the story of how he captured it.
As the setting sun kisses the tops of distant conifers, famous Grizzly 399 leads her cubs through the wildflower-filled meadows near Pilgrim Creek.
Grizzly 399 and her four cubs trekking through deep snow, heading to their winter den.
Having emerged from the den only days prior, Grizzly 399’s four tiny cubs get a first glimpse of their new world.
Covered with early morning frost, Grizzly 399 and her two cubs are on a quest for food to fatten up before heading on to their winter hibernation.
Standing on her hind legs to get a better view of their surroundings, this grand matriarch uses her vast maternal experience to keep her cubs safe.
Grizzly bear experts Louisa Willcox and David Mattson, get together with Tom Mangelsen to talk about not only the plight of 399 but also the plight of grizzlies throughout the Yellowstone ecosystem attempting to survive the threats posed by climate change.
Grizzly Times is a voice for imperiled grizzly bears in Yellowstone and their wild ecosystems in the Northern Rockies.
Grizzlies of Pilgrim Creek, Deluxe Leather book