Salmon Beware: It's Fat Bear Week 2024

Thought Question: If you could create a fun competition for animals, what would it be and how would you decide the winner?

The moment that fans of chubby cubbies across the world have waited for with fish-baited breath is finally here.

That’s right: It’s Fat Bear Week.

Running from October 2 through the 8th (Fat Bear Tuesday), the competition features the brown bears of Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve. Every year, the bears descend upon the Brooks River. There, they gorge on salmon to gain the weight necessary to support hibernation. The bears round out so quickly — in some cases gaining over 400 pounds in just a few months — that taking stock of the stocky mammals has become a spectator sport. It culminates in a single-elimination tournament. Fans determine the ultimate winner.

“For each match-up, vote for the bear you believe best exemplifies fatness and success in brown bears,” park officials advise potential voters. “The bear with the most votes advances to the next round. Only one will be crowned Fat Bear Week champion.”

It’s a subjective competition, to be sure. Nobody dares to weigh the bears. Instead, voters check webcam footage and before/after pictures of the contestants. Last year’s winner was Grazer. She's described by park officials as a defensive mother bear. They say that she has “a long straight muzzle and conspicuously blond ears. During late summer and fall, she has grizzled, light brown fur and is often one of the fattest bears to utilize Brooks River.” A few of Grazer’s rivals include 4-time champion Otis, young male Chunk (known for carrying much of his weight on a prodigious backside), and bears #428 and #429 (Grazer’s own daughters!).  

May the heftiest hibernator win.