It’s that time of year again, when viewers seek a break from the intense news cycle by focusing on Katmai National Park and Preserve in southern Alaska, which is celebrating its plumpest brown bears. The park is gearing up for its annual Fat Bear Week, starting on Tuesday, an online competition where the public gets to vote for the park’s chubbiest brown bear.
The single-elimination tournament is set to run from September 23 to September 30, with daily voting open from 12 pm to 9 pm eastern time. In each round, two bears face off against each other, and the one with the most votes moves forward. The competition’s bracket is set to be revealed on Monday, and only one bear will be declared the winner.
According to Mark Sturm, the Katmai superintendent, “The remarkable salmon runs in Katmai are vital for the park’s ecosystem and the brown bears. Fat Bear Week allows people worldwide to actively learn about bears and support their favorite competitor.”
Some of the largest brown bears in the world reside along the Brooks River in Katmai, as reported by Explore.org, the non-profit live-cam network broadcasting the bears’ movements. Bears in the area arrive at the river in mid-to-late June and stay until late October, when the salmon run ends and hibernation nears, as stated by the National Park Service.
Fat Bear Week highlights how the animals store fat for winter hibernation, during which they do not eat or drink for months and lose up to a third of their body weight.
Voters choose their preferred bear by clicking or tapping its photo online and confirming their choice with an email. The results update once votes are cast, though the system restricts one vote per email address.
Fat Bear Week aims to educate viewers about the survival strategies of Katmai’s bears, as mother bears must gain sufficient fat to hibernate and nurse their cubs, while large males contend for prime fishing spots.
This year marks the competition’s 10th anniversary, with over 1 million votes cast for the bears in 2024 from over 100 countries. Last year’s champion was a brown bear named 128 Grazer, who won the title for the second consecutive year, triumphed over a massive male that had killed her cub.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/22/fat-bear-week-alaska-katmai-national-park
