Born in the wild in same litter in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Their mother was hunted during the 2007 hunting season while nursing and wildlife officials went looking for the cubs. They found 7 cubs who had been orphaned during the hunting season.  These cubs were initially taken to South Dakota State University’s Wildlife & Fisheries Science Department. Two cubs arrived at the Phoenix Zoo in December 2007. The other cubs went to Denver & Texas.

The two cubs were named using a public naming contest, where the names Eli and Brady were chosen for the two female cubs. Eli Manning and Tom Brady were the quarterbacks in the 2008 Superbowl hosted in Phoenix. These names are not used anymore by the keepers. Sierra was Eli; Mystic was Brady.

Sierra/Eli (F) ~9/2007 passed away mid-Feb, 2025. Scroll down for  Social Media post.