In this era when Alaskan reality shows are popular as can be, there is one hit show that is as unaltered as it gets: the popular Bear Cam at Katmai National Park & Preserve. More than 10,000 people view the Bear Cam on a busy day, sharing with the world the beauty of the Katmai National Park & Preserve and the animals that reside there. For the last four years, the bears of Brooks Falls have been on a live stream to the world and the question has been posed: which one is the fattest bear?
The Fattest Bear Competition started four years ago. The title goes to the bear that has gained the most weight since the summer, feasting on wild Alaskan salmon. He or she is crowned the fattest bear in the park for the year by popular vote from the public. Photos are posted with both their early summer beach bodies and the after effects of preparing for the winter.
This year, they released a book called Bears of Brooks River 2018 which describes the life histories of the different bears the viewers see on the cam.
Katmai National Park & Preserve Katmai was created in 1918 to protect the active volcanic region including the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. The park also protects 9,000 years of human history and a rich ecosystem.
This area has been ruled by Alaskan salmon and brown bears, and the park maintains the pristine wilderness for the present and the future.
This is a lush and abundant place is popular for brown bear viewing as it has one of the world's highest concentrations of brown bears, who gather to feed on delicious sockeye salmon.
For Alaskan brown bears, fat stores can be a matter of life and death. During their winter hibernation, which can last up to six months, a bear can burn one-third of its total weight. A healthy bear getting ready for hibernation is a fat bear, and the park wanted to celebrate the bears with the competition.
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Katmai country is beautiful in the fall months with a bright golden hue against brilliant blue skies. But even though August is gorgeous, most of the bears that live here leave for the month.
The bears leave the Brooks River area in August when the salmon run slows. They return in late September and come back significantly altered, with thin forms and sagging skin completely filled out and plump cheeks.
Fat Bear Week runs from October 3 - 9, 2018 commencing in Fat Bear Tuesday, the announcement day. Here are Bear 747 (foreground) and 480 (background), two fierce competitors.
The thrilling Bear Cam shows the ancient battle of the abundant sockeye salmon striving to get to their birthplaces upstream and the dedicated bears fighting for the energy stores to survive the winter. It's a brutal and amazing.
The bears in the competition are of all ages and sizes. The "Fattest Bear" is the one who has gained the most over the feasting season of the last 6 weeks. Shown is bear 719. All the animals have numbers and some have names.
Competitor 435 is a pair of twin cubs, the light one female and the darker male. They are subadults, or bears that have been emancipated by the mother but not yet of breeding age, generally between 2.5 and 5 years old.
These magnificent creatures live in this majestically beautiful part of Alaska. Watch the webcam to share in the beautiful vistas and the animal intrigue, and make sure to vote for the fattest bear!
