Sad record around Yellowstone: grizzly bear deaths increase for third year in a row
At least 81 grizzly bear deaths were recorded in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem area in 2026, setting a new modern record for the third consecutive year. Previous peaks were 70 animals in 2021, 72 in 2024, and 74 in 2025. However, the circumstances of 16 deaths are still not officially established and are under investigation.
About 65% of cases are of anthropogenic origin. The leading cause was predator attacks on livestock, which led to the elimination of 27 individuals. Another ten bears died in other incidents with people, including after being lured by food waste, and ten were hit by cars. In addition, two grizzlies drowned in Heart Mountain Canal, one adult male was shot in self-defense in Idaho, and 12 animals died of natural causes, mostly in fights with other bears.
The release of the statistics coincides with a debate over whether to review the species' federal conservation status. The federal government has proposed delegating more regulatory authority to the states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. Conservation groups fear that this would weaken protections for the slow-breeding animals, while biologists say that spikes in mortality often reflect natural fluctuations and increases in animal density at the edges of ecosystems.
Context
Since 1975, the local grizzly population in Greater Yellowstone has recovered from 136 individuals to a peak of about 1,030 bears in 2024. According to biologists, more and more deaths are recorded precisely on the outer borders of the ecosystem, where the predators' natural habitat intersects with highways, private estates, and livestock grazing.