Grizzly bear 399 was killed on Tuesday after a vehicle hit it on U.S. Highway 26/89 in Snake River Canyon, south of Jackson, Wyoming. The bear’s identity was confirmed through ear tags and a microchip.

Collision was purely accidental and there was no indication of any wrongdoing, Lincoln County sheriff’s official says.

This story was first published by WyoFile on Oct. 23, 2024. Grizzly bear 399 — a 28-year-old bear known to millions of people and who was an economic force, drawing countless tourists to Jackson Hole — died late Tuesday in a Snake River Canyon vehicle strike.

A beloved grizzly bear known as an ambassador for her species was fatally struck on a highway in Wyoming, National Park Service officials said Wednesday. Grizzly bear 399, who got her name through a research number assignment in 2001,

Grizzly 399 had a yearling cub with her when she was struck by the vehicle. The cub's whereabouts are unknown, but there is no evidence it was involved.

One of the world’s most famous animals died Tuesday — and not from natural causes. Grizzly Bear 399 was killed on Tuesday in a car collision south of Jackson, Wyo., the National Park Service said. She was fatally hit by a vehicle on Highway 26/89 in Snake River Canyon and was later identified by her ear tags and microchip.