Unleash the Beasts: Behold the Mighty Fat Bear Week Contenders - Cast Your Vote this Wednesday!
Get ready for the highly anticipated Fat Bear Week 2023! Discover the incredible lineup of contestants from Katmai National Park & Preserve and cast your vote starting this Wednesday Experience the excitement through live cams and witness the awe-inspiring world of these magnificent fat bears
Attention all fans of the annual Fat Bear Week online contest from Alaska - it's happening! This past weekend was quite uncertain as politicians in Washington frantically worked to reach a last-minute agreement to ensure continued operation of federal government services until mid-November. Fat Bear Week was among the programs at risk of being suspended during the shutdown.
With a temporary funding solution implemented, bear enthusiasts can now focus on what really matters to them: choosing a champion in the annual competition for the impressive giants of Katmai National Park & Preserve in Alaska. The unveiling of the 12 contenders occurred at 7 p.m. ET on Monday, and the general public will have the opportunity to cast their votes starting at noon ET on Wednesday, as stated on Katmai's contest webpage.
How it works and this years fat bears
: The voting deadline is set for October 10. According to the National Park Service, the 2022 contest received an impressive one million votes. However, the voting process was temporarily disrupted due to a cheating scandal, but eventually, the victory was claimed by the massive bear known as 747.
Bear 747, last year's champ and contender in 2023, stands in a rushing river on August 3, 2023. This bear is one of the most dominant males.
F. Jimenez/National Park Service
Anyone who follows NCAA basketball brackets each March will recognize this stripped-down version.
According to the webpage, Rangers have devised a tournament-style bracket that involves pitting individual bears against each other. To determine the winner of each round, the public is encouraged to cast their votes. If you're interested in participating, you can visit www.fatbearweek.org to place your vote.
In the upcoming 2023 event, you can expect to see fan-favorite Otis, who is known for his strategic approach of "moving less to catch more," as mentioned in the announcement video. Additionally, the reigning champion from last year, 747, will also be competing. 747 is widely recognized for rarely facing any challenges in securing prime fishing spots. Now, let's introduce you to the other contenders in the competition.
⢠32 Chunk: Chunk is a well-built adult male bear with closely set eyes, a prominent brow ridge, and a distinguishing scar across his snout. Even when he's at his thinnest, Chunk still has significant fat reserves. Stay strong, Chunk!
⢠128 Grazer: This is a large adult female bear with a long, straight snout and blond ears. During late summer and fall, Grazer's fur turns grizzled light brown, and she is often one of the heaviest bears at Brooks River, where many of the Katmai bears go to feed.
⢠151 Walker: Walker is a big adult male bear who frequently visits Brooks Falls and easily finds productive fishing spots due to his size and disposition.
⢠164 Bucky Dent: Bucky Dent is a medium-sized adult male bear who found his own fishing spot at the very base of Brooks Falls, a location that other bears seldom use.
⢠284 Electra: Electra is a medium-sized adult bear with alert ears, a long neck, and a noticeable hump on her shoulders. She fishes in the lower river and is the proud mother of two known litters of cubs, whom she fiercely protects.
⢠402 bear: This is a large adult female bear with medium brown fur and crescent or apostrophe-shaped ears when viewed from the front or back. She holds the record for having the most known litters among all the bears at Brooks River, with a total of eight.
⢠428 bear: 428 is a chubby subadult bear who is 3.5 years old. She has blond ears and grizzled light brown fur. In 2023, she has been navigating the river without her mother's guidance for the first time.
⢠435 Holly: Holly is a large adult female bear with blond ears and pale tan-colored claws. By early autumn, she is usually very plump with grizzled blond fur. She is a remarkable mother, having raised one injured cub and later adopting another cub. Currently, she is a solitary bear.
⢠480 Otis: Otis is a medium-large adult male bear with a square muzzle and a droopy right ear. He was first identified in 2001 when he was 4 to 6 years old. Now, he is one of the older male bears at Brooks River.
⢠747 bear: The winner of 2022 is a large adult male bear with a square muzzle and floppy ears. He has become a massive bear, estimated to weigh 1,400 pounds (635 kilograms) at one point.
⢠901 bear: This is a medium-sized adult female bear with triangular ears rimmed in blond. Her fur is golden brown in early summer and turns grizzled brown in late summer. Unfortunately, one of her three cubs disappeared in mid-September.
⢠806 Jr.: Completing the list is a male first-year cub named 806 Jr. He has long, shaggy brown fur and a short, pointed muzzle. This spirited cub fishes alongside his mother (806) and has ended up downstream or over the waterfall on several occasions this year.
Visit the NPS site or Explore.org to learn more about the 2023 bears and see before and after photos.
Live cam
The live cam from the Brooks River at Katmai is a popular online feature.
The contest provides an enjoyable opportunity to showcase the bears' way of life as they search for salmon in the Brooks and other rivers and streams of this coastal southwest Alaska park. The bears engage in this activity in preparation for their winter hibernation.
For these bears, having a sufficient amount of fat is crucial. They have to consume enough food to last them an entire year within just six months to ensure their survival during the long winter sleep.
