Two photographers have now captured footage of a female grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park with five cubs in tow. According to park official Linda Veress’s statement to 11 News, “Five cubs in a litter are the most we have ever observed in the park, at least from 1959 to present (the period of the park’s history we have good records for).”
The average litter size for grizzly bears is two cubs, and approximately 49% of cubs survive their first year. Veress noted that it’s unclear whether all five cubs were birthed by the mom or whether she has adopted some along the way.
Photographer and wildlife guide Carolyn Golba first posted her video of the five cubs early June. Telling KTVQ about her experience filming the sow with her cubs, Golba said, “And I had people standing behind me and as those cubs kept going over those logs everyone behind me kept going one, two, three, four five.”
At some points as she was observing, there were a dozen bears in view: the sow with five cubs, another sow grizzly with three cubs and two solo black bears.
Stan Mills, who operates a YouTube channel where he posts Yellowstone wildlife videos, also had a chance encounter with the grizzly family. His video, taken on June 5, shows the sow and cubs in a park meadow. “These grizzlies were walking toward the right when I came over a little mound and spotted them,” Mills said in a caption on the video.
Bears are an iconic feature of Yellowstone National Park, with many visitors eager to catch a glimpse, sometimes even causing what official coin “bear jams” on the roadways.
Read more about the bear ecology of Yellowstone on their official website.
