Bear #56, a female black bear from the Marcell, MN area, died of old age last week. She was the oldest wild bear ever recorded.

Was she the oldest wild bear ever? Hard to say.

Is this Jordan Carlton Schaul National Geographic piece the best obituary for a bear you’ve ever read? Probably.

I know there has been a disproportionate number of bear posts these last couple weeks. Bears running from police. The agonizing irony of living as a collared bear (as Bear #56 did). I don’t apologize. Bears are forest indicators. As go the bears, so go the forests.

UPDATE: And yes, bear hunting season has also begun.

UPDATE: This Sam Cook Duluth News Tribune column was also a touching remembrance of Bear #56.