--- description: The 25-year-old bear had been studied and photographed frequently title: Famous 'Scarface' Grizzly Bear Shot Dead Near Yellowstone image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt41de626d40428c72/69889186a988ca52f16b7aef/scarface-bear.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [animals](/tag/animals/) ## animals Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Famous 'Scarface' Grizzly Bear Shot Dead Near Yellowstone by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 2, 2016 9:59 PM CUT  Yellowstone National Park grizzly bear known as "Scarface" in Oct. 2005. Yellowstone National Park grizzly bear known as "Scarface" in Oct. 2005.Ray Paunovich—AP by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 2, 2016 9:59 PM CUT A famous grizzly bear from Yellowstone National Park was [fatally shot](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/animalia/wp/2016/05/02/famed-yellowstone-grizzly-scarface-shot-and-killed-spurring-investigation/?tid=sm%5Ftw "undefined") just outside the park after 25 years as one of the most frequently studied and photographed bears in the region. The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks department announced the news in a [statement](http://fwp.mt.gov/news/newsReleases/fishAndWildlife/nr%5F0831.html "undefined") in late April, though the shooting actually took place in November. Since the grizzly bear is a threatened species, Scarface’s death is under investigation. The animal, formally known as Number 211 but nicknamed for the slashes on his face, was captured by scientists 17 times in his life, allowing them to document his health, the Washington _Post_ reports. At his largest, he weighed 600 pounds, but as an elderly bear he clocked in at only 338 the last time he was captured in 2015\. He often allowed humans to approach him quite closely, making him a favorite subject for photographers at Yellowstone. \[[_Washington Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/animalia/wp/2016/05/02/famed-yellowstone-grizzly-scarface-shot-and-killed-spurring-investigation/?tid=sm%5Ftw "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4315421/scarface-grizzly-killed-yellowstone/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4315421/scarface-grizzly-killed-yellowstone/"},"headline":"Famous 'Scarface' Grizzly Bear Shot Dead Near Yellowstone","datePublished":"2016-05-02T21:59:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T17:13:02.427Z","description":"The 25-year-old bear had been studied and photographed frequently","url":"https://time.com/4315421/scarface-grizzly-killed-yellowstone/","keywords":["animals"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt41de626d40428c72/69889186a988ca52f16b7aef/scarface-bear.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt41de626d40428c72/69889186a988ca52f16b7aef/scarface-bear.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Yellowstone Bear Death","caption":"FILE - In this Oct. 2005, file photo provided by Ray Paunovich shows a well-known Yellowstone National Park grizzly bear known as \"Scarface.\" Montana wildlife officials have confirmed that the grizzly bear was shot and killed during a confrontation with","creditText":"Ray Paunovich—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/animals/","name":"animals"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4315421/scarface-grizzly-killed-yellowstone/","name":"Famous 'Scarface' Grizzly Bear Shot Dead Near Yellowstone"}}]}] ```