I’ve written several times about the Alaska brown bears in Katmai National Park and Preserve, and have included links to the webcams that follow their summer salmon fishing.
What I didn’t know until I saw it in yesterday’s Washington Post is that for the last four years viewers have picked a winner of the “Fat Bear Week” contest. Photos of the fattest bears are posted on Facebook and the one garnering the most Likes, wins.
This year, for the second time, the winner is 409 Beadnose. (Her name combines her official park-assigned number and her distinctive upturned nose.) Looks like she’ll have a very happy hibernation this winter.
The competition was fierce, as you can see:
Do read the Post article if you have time. It’s informative and well written.
Yay!! I picked the winner this year. Really hard deciding betw 409 & 747 yesterday, though!
I didn’t know about the contest, or I’d have voted. Judging just from the pics, I’d have voted for 747. But if I’d been following them through the summer, I might have already has a favorite. It’s amazing how plump they get!
Am surprised they get so fat as those pictured.
Me too. I had no idea bears got so fat before hibernating. Of course, these particular bears gorged on unlimited salmon all summer. Bears elsewhere have to work a lot harder and may not do nearly as well.
They should sleep well with all that body-food over the winter.
They have a hard life, don’t they?
They always look so cuddly to me, pity they’re not. 😀 :bear:
Teddy bears are cuddly. In the western part of the greater Denver area, the real bears are a problem this time of year. They come down into town and break into cars and trashcans, looking for food.