Brian McDonald
A rare white grizzly bear was killed after being struck by a vehicle on the Trans-Canada Highway, about 12 hours after her two bear cubs died after being struck by a car on the same road, Parks Canada officials said Tuesday.
Park officials received a report that the two cubs were struck and killed Thursday morning. On the evening of the same day, the cubs’ mother – known as Grizzly Bear 178 – was grazing in a ditch in Yoho National Park. Officials who were repairing wildlife fences nearby said they spotted her.
A train passed through the ditch, and as the metal wheels screeched, workers “saw it really get scared,” wildlife management specialist Saundi Stevens said during a press conference. The bear ran out of the ditch, up the road and “right in front of two vehicles on the highway,” Stevens said.
One of the vehicles was able to avoid it, but the other hit the bear, Stevens said. Officials stopped traffic and the animal limped back into the forest.
Parks Canada
There were “no other apparent injuries other than the lameness,” Stevens said. “We were really optimistic that she could have actually recovered from this collision.”
GB 178 often escaped the fence to wander along the side of the road, probably to look for food, Stevens said. Since 2022, wildlife experts have spent a lot of time trying to stop the bear from entering the roadside, but GB 178 was particularly adept at identifying gaps in fences and getting through.
Relocating the bear and her cubs “was not considered an option,” Steven said, as they were not on the side of the road for long periods and moving them was riskier.
Twenty-four hours after GB 178 was struck by the vehicle, wildlife experts received a mortality signal from the bear’s GPS tracker. Park officials confirmed the bear’s death on Saturday. Stevens said the team was “devastated” to lose her and her two puppies in such a short period of time.
The team was “deeply invested and really trying to avoid this outcome,” Stevens said, imploring drivers to obey speed limits and drive cautiously.
Parks Canada
Stevens also addressed rumors on social media that GB 178 returned to the road Thursday night to mourn her puppies before she was killed. Bears often eat their deceased cubs, and GB 178 showed no signs of distress after her two cubs were killed, Stevens said.
“She showed no signs of distress and was observed looking for dandelions along the road, typical behavior for her,” Stevens said.
Parks Canada estimates there are approximately 90 grizzly bears in Banff National Park in Alberta and Yoho and Kootenay national parks in British Columbia. Although exact bear numbers fluctuate from year to year, the population is considered stable.
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