Yellowstone-area grizzly bear linked to fatal mauling euthanized

A grizzly bear linked to a fatal mauling in July was euthanized Saturday after it broke into a house near West Yellowstone.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks was called to the residence after the bear broke a window to enter the house and steal a container of dog food.

FWP staff and local law enforcement trapped the bear and her cub Saturday evening. With approval from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the adult bear was shot and killed.

The bear was a 10-year-old female known to biologists and believed responsible for a fatal attack on a woman on the Buttermilk Trail near West Yellowstone in July.

According to FWP, the same bear injured a hiker in Idaho in 2020.

The FWP stated in a Wednesday news release:

“While both incidents were assessed to be defensive responses by the bear, multiple efforts to trap and remove the bear were made after the fatal attack in July due to the incident’s proximity to residences, campgrounds and a high-use OHV trail system. These efforts were unsuccessful.”

The 46-pound grizzly bear cub is being held at a wildlife rehabilitation facility in Helena and will likely end up at a zoo.

West Yellowstone is just outside the West Entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

–Generic grizzly bear image courtesy of the National Park Service