Extremely Rare White Grizzly Bear Near Canada National Park Reportedly Passed Away

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The Canadian Rockies are rich with diverse wildlife, including vast populations of powerful grizzly bears. Yet out of the many thousands of grizzlies that populate the region, none of them captured the public's attention quite like Nakoda, a female grizzly bear who became famous across the globe for her incredibly rare white fur.

Nakoda often traveled between two prominent national parks in the Canadian Rockies, and a rare Nakoda sighting was a special treat for the handful of explorers lucky enough to see her every year. But now, no one will glimpse Nakoda's platinum-blonde fur through the trees ever again, as reportedly, she passed away very recently under tragic circumstances.

Canadian wildlife photographer David Wilder ( @davidwilderphoto on TikTok) was one of those lucky people who got to film Nakoda during her life in the Canadian Rockies . It was only fair, then, that he be the one to break the tragic news of her passing to his audience.

Related: Woman’s Chance Encounter With White Grizzly Bear in Canadian Rockies Is Going Viral

"It's with a heavy heart that I tell you Nakoda, the exceptionally rare white grizzly bear , has died," wrote Wilder. "Earlier this week her cubs were struck and killed on the highway near Lake O'Hara and later that same day, she too was struck by a car, likely looking for her babies. A few days later she succumbed to her injuries. It breaks my heart and fills me with anger that we as a people could not keep her safe."

Sadly, Parks Canada officials confirmed Nakoda's sudden and tragic death to CBC News . Nakoda and her family were in Yoho National Park when two of her cubs were struck and killed on the Trans-Canada Highway through the park. Approximately 12 hours later, Nakoda returned to the area to look for her cubs when a passing train startled her into the roadway in front of two vehicles.

"One vehicle was able to swerve and avoid a collision, but a second vehicle was unable to react in time and struck the bear," a Parks Canada spokesperson told CBC News .

Nakoda reportedly limped away into the woods, and at the time, park officials were hopeful that she would recover from the car accident. However, on June 8, her GPS collar sent out a "mortality signal," indicating that she hadn't moved in 24 hours. Nakoda was dead.

A Truly One-of-a-Kind Bear

If you'd ever seen Nakoda, you'd be forgiven if you mistook her for a misplaced polar bear- though of course, she was not. Nor was she albino; as wildlife experts told The Guardian , Nakoda's unique pale coloring was the result of an incredibly rare recessive gene .

Nakoda's one-of-a-kind coloring made her instantly recognizable wherever she went. The gorgeous grizzly frequently traveled between Yoho National Park and the nearby Banff National Park , earning the awestruck admiration of nature photographers and wildlife enthusiasts the world over, many of whom were doubtlessly excited to see Nakoda and her new cubs this year after months of hibernation. None of them could have predicted how soon Nakoda's epic adventure would come to an end.

The rage and heartbreak expressed over Nakoda's death by people like David Walker is poignant. In our overdeveloped world, wild animals are being pushed to the fringes of their native territories. Even in the vast wilderness of Yoho National Park, as "safe" a place as any for wild grizzlies, Nakoda and her family were still not safe from man's intrusion.

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