Grizzly bear experts, conservationists, even Parks Canada officials, predicted it, but nobody expected death would come this soon.
Late Wednesday night, two grizzly bear cubs that were orphaned after their mother -- a bear with celebrity status in Banff National Park -- was struck by a train almost three weeks ago, were killed when they burrowed under a fence and attempted to cross the Trans-Canada Highway.
Alerted to two tiny, motherless cubs wandering on the road, Mounties and park officials rushed to the area near the Mount Norquay exit and frantically flashed lights in attempt to slow traffic.
"We're talking dark on a busy highway and we're talking about little dark bears," said Jillian Roulet, superintendent for Banff National Park.
"They were trying their best, but it didn't work."
One bear was struck in the westbound lane, the other in the eastbound. A third cub, a male, who was not along the roadway Wednesday night is being tracked for capture and relocation to captivity.
"It's tough to accept that we've lost four bears in the space of three weeks and one of them is destined to a life in captivity," said Tracey Henderson, program director of Alberta's Grizzly Bear Alliance.
In a fragile ecosystem where grizzly bear numbers have dwindled -- the park has perhaps 55 to 70 bears -- the loss of even one is a massive blow.
The death of two cubs and their mother highlights the conflict between humans and wildlife.
The 10-year-old sow, known as bear No. 66, preferred to hang around town, and was with the three cubs and likely feeding on berries along the Canadian Pacific Rail line between Banff and Lake Louise when it was hit on Aug. 19.
At the time, Banff officials canvassed bear experts from around the continent and decided that the cubs should neither be captured and reintroduced into the wild nor kept permanently in captivity. The best course of action, Parks concluded, was to let nature take its course.
. Fortuitously, wildlife specialists placed an ear transmitter on the remaining cub on Wednesday afternoon, so tracking should be easy. Once it is captured, the Calgary Zoo has agreed to take the bear on a temporary basis.