#438 is a medium-small female with a light brown or blondish coat. She has wide-set and large blonde ears.

Her muzzle is grooved and she has distinctivewhite claws.

#438 was first classified as an adult female in 1999, but older records suggest she was likely raising yearling cubs in 1997.

She raised her first confirmed litter into their third summer. In 2010, she kept her most recent litter into their fourth summer. It is rare for bears in Katmai to care for cubs for this long.

In 2004, #438 and her cubs directly approached an angler with a fish on his line. Within 30 minutes, the family group moved downstream and they obtained a bagged fish from an angler who had dumped it on the beach as the family rapidly approached.

In 2009, she and her two cubs obtained garbage from the incinerator building at Brooks Camp.

After receiving this reward, they frequently investigated the buildings near camp and were difficult to haze away.

Help keep bears from learning these behaviors.

Store all food and garbage securely. Stay alert at all times and stop fishing well before a bear approaches within 50 yards.