The people have spoken: 128 Grazer claimed the title of Fat Bear Week champion last week for the second consecutive year, triumphing over 32 Chunk in a highly anticipated final. This marks the second time the two bears have faced off, with Grazer also emerging victorious in 2023.
The annual Fat Bear Week competition is hosted by Katmai National Park & Preserve and explore.org. Twelve bears face off in a tournament-style bracket, with fan votes deciding daily winners. Each day, the bear with the most votes moves forward, culminating in a showdown between the two largest and most impressive competitors.
Grazer is a fierce (and quite large) mama bear, who has raised two litters of cubs in Katmai National Park & Preserve, her home since 2005. She has conspicuous blonde ears and is one of the best anglers on Brooks River.
This year’s final was especially gripping due to the personal history between Grazer and Chunk, a dominant male bear weighing over 1,200 pounds at his heaviest.
Grazer often preemptively confronts and attacks much larger bears—even large and dominant adult males—in order to ensure her cubs are safe, according to NPS. But earlier this year, while feeding at Brooks Falls, Grazer’s two cubs tumbled over the falls and down river toward Chunk. Although Grazer rushed to protect them, one cub was fatally injured in the encounter.
Fans of Grazer catapulted her to victory by more than 40,000 votes.
Fat Bear Week not only celebrates these incredible brown bears but also raises awareness about the challenges they face in preparing for winter. Bears must pack on 20-40% of their body weight in order to survive hibernation.
After months of almost non-stop eating, the Katmai brown bears are beginning to bed down in their dens. Most Alaskan bears will enter hibernation in October and November and will once again emerge in late March, early April.
