In case you weren't aware, it's time for Fat Bear Week! It's the annual online tournament of champions in which the public chooses a champion of the chubby from Alaska's Katmai National Park. The rather rotund brown bear population there have become Internet darlings over the last decade or so. The bracket-style challenge has played out every year since 2015 and has become immensely popular as the bruins pack on the fat in anticipation of winter hibernation.
One of the reasons the bears grow so large is because they are nearing the end of summer-long feeding frenzy to prepare for hibernation. The bears pack on the last of those pounds near Brooks Falls from June until October as the animals congregate to feast on running sockeye salmon in the shallow waters. The park has been live broadcasting this behavior to the Internet for years, and it has proven to be immensely popular.
According to a video from Explore.org, Mike Fitz first came up with the idea for a competition back in 2014 after seeing someone post comparative screenshots from bear cams showing one bruin's massive weight gain from middle summer until fall. The idea was a hit and helped significantly grow Katmai's social media presence. Now, it is an anticipated annual event, with the final competition seeing hundreds of thousands of votes cast.
Biologists have chosen 12 of the park's fattest bruins, each identified with a number and nickname, and have placed them all in a bracket for the single elimination tournament. The public can then choose and vote upon their favorites in head-to-head matchups which are open for voting between 12 - 9 p.m. Eastern every day. The contest runs October 5 through 11, with the ultimate winner being crowned on "Fat Bear Tuesday."
And yes, there are favorites in this contest. The most notable frontrunner is bear 480, also known as "Otis." He's a force to be reckoned with. The large bruin once ate 42 salmon, approximately 200 pounds of fish, in one sitting. Otis also won the inaugural title back in 2014 and has been victorious in the contest three more times since then, including last year. However, Otis is getting older and may have trouble competing, especially against top challengers like bear 435, aka "Holly," who won in 2019, and 747, another large male who was the 2020 champion. There are several other younger up and comers who may be able to out-compete the old timer for food.
For more information and to vote on your favorites, check out Explore.org's fat bear week page.
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