This fall, everyone’s favorite bear-based holiday returns. In preparation for Fat Bear Week, Explore.org’s bear cam is sharing a live video of bears at Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve. After hibernating through the winter, the park’s bears emerge and become more active in early July. Currently, Katmai bear cam viewers can watch brown bears searching for fish in the water at Brooks Falls.
As sockeye salmon migrate in June and July, the bears take advantage of the thriving waters to eat their fill of fish. As the live feed’s description explains, “the largest and most successful bears can catch and eat more than 30 salmon (over 120 pounds) per day!” Some sockeye salmon can contain 4,500 calories, making them the perfect food for bears looking to fatten up.
Since 2014, Katmai National Park and Preserve has celebrated this fattening process with the Fat Bear Week competition. The week begins in early fall and includes a “March-Madness style bracket” where people can vote online for the fattest bear. In 2021, seasoned champion 480 Otis earned his fourth Fat Bear Week win. Previous wins for Otis came in 2014, 2016, and 2017.
Keep an eye on the live cam for a glimpse of Fat Bear Week’s 2022 competitors and other local wildlife. Curious animal enthusiasts can also join Explore.org’s bear cam chat for live events every Tuesday with naturalist Mike Fitz and ranger Chris Kliesrath. Still hungry for more fat bear content? Make sure to follow Explore.org on Twitter for special bear updates and memes.
When someone stands too close to you in the grocery checkout line. pic.twitter.com/Q44vth9XIW
— explore.org (@exploreorg) July 20, 2022
Learn more about Fat Bear Week here, and get the scoop on early 2022 Fat Bear Week frontrunner Bear Force One here. Happy bear-watching!