A mama grizzly that mauled a hiker to death outside Yellowstone National Park in July — and also savaged another person in Idaho three years ago — was killed after breaking into a house, officials said.
Early Saturday, a homeowner living near Yellowstone reported that a bear with a cub had busted through a kitchen window and grabbed a container of dog food, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said in a statement.
Later that day, agency workers and local law enforcement officers captured the cub and shot dead the 10-year-old female grizzly, citing “an immediate public safety threat from the bear’s food-conditioned behavior.”
The animal was euthanized with authorization from the US Fish and Wildlife Service because grizzly bears are protected under the Endangered Species Act.
The bear that killed hiker killed Amie Adamson, 48, outside Yellowstone National Park in July was shot and killed by wildlife officials in Montana Saturday. Janet Adamson / Facebook
Through genetic analysis and other identifying characteristics, the slain bear was confirmed to have been involved in the July 22 fatal attack on Amie Adamson, a 48-year-old former teacher from Kansas, whose body was found on the Buttermilk Trail in Custer Gallatin National Forest outside the national park.
Adamson was an avid hiker who quit teaching in 2015 to backpack across the country and “died doing what she loved,” according to her family.
The bear, which had been originally captured in 2017 for research purposes, was also involved in an attack in Idaho that injured a hiker near Henrys Lake State Park in 2020.
The victim, Gregory “Thor” Godar, survived and told East Idaho News that he thought he was going to die as the hulking predator slashed at his back with its claws and bit him on the stomach after he ran into the mama bear and her two “big fat cubs.”
The female grizzly bear was euthanized after breaking into a house with her cub to steal dog food (stock image).Corbis via Getty Images
“I said to myself, ‘Well, at least I’m getting killed by a pretty bear.’ She was very beautiful,” Godar said.
Godard, an avid outdoorsman, had been hiking with his wife on May 29, 2020, when he spotted the beast 20 feet away from him.
He said that in an “unbelievably quick” second, the bear charged at him before he could deploy the cannister of bear spray he had with him.
“She paused for a split second 5 feet away from me and looked me straight in the eye,” Godar told the station. “I think she was trying to figure out the best way to attack.”
After clawing at and chewing on him, the mama grizzly ran off with her brood, leaving Godard lying bloodied on the ground, but alive.
Both encounters were believed to have been defensive responses by the female bear, officials said. Attempts to trap the animal after the two attacks were unsuccessful.
The furry mom’s 46-pound male cub is being held at the state wildlife rehabilitation center in Helena while arrangements are made to send him to a zoo in the coming weeks.