When Jane Goodall died Wednesday at 91, the world lost an iconic animal advocate and environmentalist. Famed Wyoming wildlife photographer Tom Mangelsen lost a dear friend.

Mangelsen first met Goodall nearly 25 years ago when she came to give a presentation in Jackson, where Mangelsen lives.

Even back then, she had long since established legendary status, mostly for her work with chimpanzees and other wild primates. Mangelsen told Cowboy State Daily that he was “nervous as hell,” about that initial meeting.

It turned out that Goodall was easy to get along with, and not at all pretentious, he said. They quickly became friends as he took her on a tour of Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks in 2001.

Over the following years, they met and traveled together numerous times.

They made

See Full Page