Massive deception – bear-faced dishonesty in an Alaskan wildlife survey

Bear 747 won Katmai’s annual Fat Bear Week event. Bear wins again. Bear 747 earned 68,105 votes, beating Bear 901 with 56,876 votes. Fat Bear Week celebrates the park’s bears’ accomplishments before hibernation. Fat Bear Tuesday became Bear Week in 2015. The tournament honors Katmai’s brown bears as they gain weight for hibernation. Katmai park rangers select 12 bears and give mid-July and early-September pictures. Fans voted for their favorite hibernating bear on October 5. The bears battle it out in head-to-head knockout rounds. Katmai National Park’s Brooks River is home to the world’s largest brown bears. Bears must bulk up before winter to survive. Each bear consumes 500lbs of Brooks River salmon to prepare for winter. They use stored fat for energy and lose a third of their body fat in winter. They’re more likely to survive the cold months if they gain weight. Bear 747, the champion of Fat Bear Week in 2020, nearly didn’t make the final due to voter fraud in the semi-finals that were immediately addressed.

Holly 901 appeared to defeat Bear 747 in the semi-final, but an inquiry discovered that she garnered 9,000 votes quickly. Katmai National Park tweeted Sunday that someone is spamming the Fat Bear Week poll, but it’s easy to detect which votes are fake. Viewers from across the world tune in to the park’s live stream to see the hungry bears feast on fresh sushi. The park is only accessible by light airplane, so armchair fat bear aficionados vote daily at FatBearWeek.com via the Alaska park’s Flickr page.

This week celebrates triumph and survival. The park claimed it celebrates the brown bears’ resilience, adaptability, and strength.