One of Yellowstone National Park’s most photographed and beloved grizzly bears, known to fans as “Raspberry,” has not been seen in nearly two months, raising concern among wildlife watchers that the iconic matriarch may have died after a carcass was recently discovered.
Watch wildlife photographer Deby Dixon describe Raspberry's legacy:
Raspberry, often spotted with her cubs over the years, including well-known Snow and Jam, has long captured the hearts of visitors and photographers alike for her maternal behavior.
She is considered one of the park’s most well-known bears due to allowing her daughters to stay within her territory, which can be a rare dynamic in grizzly bear social behavior.
“Raspberry is kind of the most famous matriarch of Yellowstone,” said Deby Dixon, a wildlife photographer. “When she was playing with Snow, it was just so adorable and cute, you know, such a loving mom, and I think that's a lot with the bears is they're so human.”
Dixon has spent 13 years photographing wildlife in the park, and Raspberry was an animal her camera lens and heart became familiar with. She often posts photos of the grizzly to her social media and photography website.
“Once I get to know them a little bit and their personality and stuff, of course I'm going to care, and I'm going to share,” said Dixon.
Lately, Dixon has had concerns about Raspberry's whereabouts. She last saw her on May 22 and reported that the bear appeared lethargic and thinner than usual. Raspberry has not been spotted since.
"She is such a high-profile bear that for nobody to see her for this length of time, at this time of year, is pretty unusual," said Dixon.
But enthusiasts fear that something may have taken a turn for the worse after a female grizzly carcass was discovered in early June in Sylvan Pass, according to Dixon. It is near the same spot she last spotted Raspberry.
“The guy that took the video described it as having a long nose, which Raspberry has a long nose, but, you know, nobody knew for sure. And she has not been seen since that carcass was discovered,” said Dixon.
Yellowstone National Park officials say there is no way to confirm whether the deceased bear was Raspberry.
In a written statement, park official Linda Veress said, "We cannot confirm that the bear killed in early June in the Sylvan Pass area of the park was one called 'Raspberry.' Since we do not have DNA samples from 'Raspberry' or the bear that was killed (prior to its death), we can't compare them to determine if it is the same bear or not. The bear was killed by another bear, not by a vehicle strike."
Unlike some other bears tracked in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, Raspberry and her offspring are not tagged or collared due to the difficulty of trapping in the remote areas they frequent, according to Dixon. She fears that Raspberry's unhealed injury to her leg may have left her vulnerable to a male grizzly, or boar.
“I personally was pretty concerned about her ability to defend a cub with that injury," said Dixon. “At first I was just overwhelmed with sadness. I just couldn't think about bear photography in Yellowstone without Raspberry. She's just such a fixture."
The possible loss floods back memories for Dixon of other recent bear fatalities.
Most notably, Grand Teton National Park's most famous bear, 399, was killed by a vehicle last October. The loss deeply affected the wildlife community, but it was one Dixon knew would come. Raspberry’s own mother, Blaze, was killed by wildlife officers in 2015 after a fatal attack on a hiker.
"When 399 was killed, it was devastating, but I had been preparing myself for her death for a few years because she was old," said Dixon. "With Raspberry, she's just been such a fixture and if she is gone, that's so unexpected."
While for now there is no way to confirm Raspberry's fate until she is seen again, the absence has left a mark on those who have spent years following her and her cubs.
“She would be a huge loss to this bear community, to all of us," said Dixon.
Still, Dixon wishes more than anything to be proven wrong.
“I feel in my gut that she's left us, but I want to hope that she hasn't, and if she does show up, I'll eat all the crow anybody wants me to eat," said Dixon. “I'll hold out hope until the end that she's going to come walking across the road.”
This story was originally published by Isabel Spartz with the Scripps News Group in Billings.
