Katmai National Park is home to some of Earth’s largest brown bears. Adult male bears average 700 – 900 pounds (317 – 408 kg) in mid-summer. By late summer and fall, the very biggest males often weigh more than 1,200 pounds (544 kg). Adult female bears average smaller than adult males by one-third to one-half, largely due to the energetic costs of raising cubs.

Brown bears are omnivores, and they have been documented eating dozens of different plant and animal foods in Katmai. For the Fat Bear Week bears, however, salmon are especially important. At Brooks River, bears gather to fish for sockeye salmon between late June and late October. Bears work hard to take advantage of this bounty and gain enough fat to survive winter hibernation.

While every brown bear seeks to satisfy the same basic needs, they are also adaptable, intelligent, and individualistic. Success and survival for a bear depends on its unique set of behaviors, knowledge, and skills. Get to know the bears of Fat Bear Week and how they survive in the wildlands of Katmai National Park, Alaska, home to some of the last great runs of salmon on earth. 

 

 

32 Chunk

 

Identification

Chunk is a large adult male with narrowly-set eyes, dark brown fur, a prominent brow ridge, and a distinctive scar across his muzzle.

Biography

Chunk was first identified in 2007 as an independent, chunky-looking 2.5-year-old bear. Although his behavior has been enigmatic in past years, summer 2024 left no doubt of Chunk’s size, strength, and dominance in the face of competition.

As a very large, perhaps 1,200-pound-plus bear, Chunk uses his size and confidence to his advantage. No bear on the river challenged Chunk successfully for fishing spots. Bears that were unwary or unlucky found themselves under threat when he was nearby. Even the giants known as 747 and 856 yielded space to him. This gave Chunk unlimited access to his most preferred fishing spots. That effort paid off in salmon. Webcam viewers counted Chunk eating 42 salmon in about 10 hours on August 26.

Chunk has gained the confidence and ability to take advantage of opportunities not available to most other bears. His low hanging belly and ample hindquarters bear the fruit of his summer success. He excelled this summer in a place where conflict among bears is necessary to maintain rank and access to the most productive fishing spots.

 

128 Grazer

 

Identification

Grazer is a large adult female with a long straight muzzle and conspicuously blond ears. During late summer and fall, she has grizzled, light brown fur.

Biography

Grazer was introduced to Brooks River as a young cub in 2005. Almost 20 years later, she is a highly defensive mother bear who is raising her third litter. Her fearless nature is respected by other bears who often choose to give her space instead of risking a confrontation. This elevates Grazer’s rank in the bear hierarchy above almost all bears except for the largest males.

Yet even Grazer knows the pain of loss. On an afternoon in July 2024 both of her first-year cubs were swept over the falls. The water carried both siblings toward 32 Chunk, the most dominant bear on the river. Chunk attacked. Grazer rushed to defend her cubs, although not before Chunk injured the cub nearest to him. That cub later died from its injuries. The surviving cub was a 2024 Fat Bear Junior contender.

Grazer’s skills and toughness make her one of Brooks River’s most formidable, successful, and adaptable bears. Her story this year demonstrates that even the most skilled and formidable mother bears experience hardship and loss.

 

 

151 Walker

 

Identification

Walker is a large adult male. He has a long, tapering muzzle and widely spaced, upright ears. His fur is dark brown and he has a light bulb or pear-shaped body.

Biography

Walker was first identified as an independent 2.5-year-old in 2009. He’s a frequent user of Brooks Falls and the nearby vicinity where he prefers to fish in the far pool, on the lip, and in the riffles. He often has easy access to productive fishing spots due to his size and increasingly assertive disposition.

Walker ranks high currently in the hierarchy of bears at Brooks River and shows much less tolerance for other bears compared to his younger self. He establishes and maintains his dominance at Brooks Falls by displacing other bears from preferred fishing spots. In a significant change from previous years, Walker was able to displace long-time rival 856. His confidence in using his size shows in other ways as well. Walker remained a playful bear during his young adult years, but now we’re witness to an individual who demonstrates that behavioral change is a fact of life for bears.

 

164 Bucky Dent

 

Identification

Bear 164 is a large-bodied adult male with grizzled brown fur and light brown ears. Many observers identify 164 by an apparent indentation at the base of his upper muzzle.

Biography

Young bears must adapt to the competition they face. For some bears that means remaining patient for opportunity or showing aggression to force their way into a fishing spot. Bear 164 chose a different strategy. He invented a new fishing spot. By standing at the edge of the deepest plunge pool, nearly under the cascade at Brooks Falls, 164 discovered that he could catch salmon welling up from the pool below, jumping through the air, or falling from above. This is a spot that no other bear—currently or in the recent past—has tried to fish consistently.

Large amounts of food allow bears to grow fast, and 164 has grown a lot during the last few years. In August 2024 he appeared nearly as tall and long as former Fat Bear Week champ 747. Bear 164 apparently knew his size could be used to his advantage. He often fished near 747 who did not work to displace the younger competitor late this summer.

Fishing at Brooks Falls isn’t easy for young bears. He carved himself a unique niche at Brooks Falls, but will he rely on that ability as he matures into a large adult or will he use more traditional skills and strategies to overcome the challenges he faces?

 

747

 

Identification

Bear 747 is a large adult male with a blocky muzzle and dark brown fur. Both of his outer ears are damaged, likely due to fights with other large bears.

Biography

Few brown bears ever grow as large as the bear who shares an identification number with a jet airplane. When 747 was first identified in 2004, he was a relatively young bear, only a few years old and unable to compete with larger bears for the most preferred fishing locations. Since then, he has become a giant among bears, once estimated to weigh 1,400 pounds (636 kg). He is a skilled and efficient angler who is found fishing most often in the jacuzzi or near the far pool of Brooks Falls.

Large body size doesn’t free a bear from challenges. In particular, bears like 32 Chunk and 856 have worked to displace 747 from preferred fishing spots. This summer, 747 found the strength to overcome and displace 856 but not Chunk.

Might 747 feel the effect of his age? He is more than 20 years old and remains a very dominant bear, although there are signs that a few younger bears may not perceive 747 to be as dominant as he once was. During much of August, 164, another Fat Bear Week candidate, made an effort to fish very close to 747. Surprisingly, 747 often did not work to displace 164. Perhaps 747 felt that displacing 164 wasn’t worth the effort or maybe 747 didn’t feel he had the strength to dissuade 164’s proximity.

With his fishing skill and rank near the top of the hierarchy, advantage comes to 747 in many ways even if life near the top includes moments of difficulty. He was the Fat Bear Week champion in 2020 and 2022.

 

504

 

Identification

This mother bear has uniformly brown fur and a long, straight muzzle that gives her a distinctive face.

Biography

Brown bear families in Katmai National Park typically separate at the beginning of a cub’s third or fourth summer, but some families, such as the 504 clan, can stay together through four summers.

Caring for cubs into their third summer and beyond creates a mix of consequences. 504’s extra year of maternal care delays her ability to conceive another litter, since female brown bears do not mate when they are caring for cubs. Yet the potential advantages of remaining together could be significant. The cubs have more time to grow large while they are provided with additional guidance, protection, and leadership from 504. This will ease their future transition into independent bears, which is likely to occur next spring. The family, collectively, also achieved a higher rank in the bear hierarchy than any of them could have attained as solo bears.

This is 504’s first Fat Bear Week tournament. By remaining a family, 504 and her huge cubs were gifted an opportunity to reap the greater rewards provided by their size and success.

 

519

 

Identification

This is a nearly three-year-old subadult bear with grizzled brown fur, tall upright ears, and lanky legs.

Biography

The typical time frame for Katmai’s bear families to separate is late spring when a cub enters its third or fourth summer. When 719 and her then 2.5-year-old cub arrived at Brooks River in early July 2024, the family appeared to be destined for another summer together. As it often occurs when people try to describe the behavior of wildlife, however, words like “typical” should be used with a wariness and understanding that exceptions will occur.

519 became a fully independent bear sometime in the third week of July, which is much later than average for family separation in this bear population. Whether the separation was accidental or triggered by the return of mother’s estrus cycle, 519 suddenly found herself navigating life on her own. She could no longer count on a body guard or a guide. Survival depended on adapting to the circumstances.

She navigated these new challenges by hovering on the fringes of the falls to scavenge leftover salmon and scouring areas of the river where she had more room to avoid larger bears. A young bear of her stature is also able to digest vegetation more efficiently to gain body mass, so tender grass and other plants remained an important part of her diet.

As illustrated by 519’s lanky legs and body, the subadult years are a time of awkward ursine adolescence. All bears must endure it on their journey to adulthood. 519 used her adaptability and knowledge to adjust to her new social status after a sudden and surprising separation from her mother.

 

856

 

Identification

This is a very large adult male. He has uniformly brown body fur and light-brown ears. When 856 stands on all four legs, he is likely more than 5 feet (1.5 meters) tall at the shoulder.

Biography

Bear 856 was classified as a young adult in 2006. At that time he had a relatively small body compared to older adults. By his tenth or eleventh year of life, he became one of the biggest bears at the river with an assertive disposition equal to his size.

Although he experienced some setbacks, 856 was the river’s most consistently dominant bear between 2011 and 2023. He used his size and fighting skills to intimidate other bears and gain access to food and potential mates. His status in the hierarchy was never assured though. It had to be maintained.

During summer 2024, 856 faced increasingly difficult challenges from long-time rivals such as 32 Chunk, 151 Walker, and 747. He appeared unable to defend his status like in years past, but instead of fighting battles that he was unlikely to win 856 changed his strategy. He became more patient in his attempts to access productive fishing spots, and he yielded space to other large bears instead of standing his ground. 

A resilient bear such as 856 doesn’t give up easily. He met challenges head-on even as he proved that he could use his adaptability to overcome hardship.

 

901

 

Identification

This is a medium-sized adult female. Bear 901 has blond-rimmed, triangular ears. Her fur is golden brown in early summer and grizzled brown in late summer

Biography

Bear 901 was first identified as a 2.5-year-old in 2018. At the end of Fat Bear Week 2022, with 901’s body fat providing the buoyancy that raised her to the final match, many people wondered if 901 would return to Brooks River with cubs in 2023. The answer came early that summer when she arrived with three spring cubs representing her first litter.

Young mother bears experience a steep learning curve in their efforts to raise cubs. This is a difficult task for mother bears, and first-time mothers are particularly challenged to provision the family with food while keeping them safe. Unfortunately, 901’s litter did not survive. She returned to the river alone this year.

Her status as a single female rather than a mother in 2024 gave 901 a different opportunity. The salmon she consumed was converted efficiently into her own body mass. She could continue to explore and refine her foraging skills. She could learn further from her own experiences and those of other bears. The salmon she ate may become energy that she can utilize to give birth and nurse newborn cubs this winter. The knowledge she gained may provide her with the memory and experience to keep a future litter of cubs safe.

Young mother bears face a steep learning curve and first-year cubs have high mortality rates. 901 experienced the loss of her family but appears poised to learn from that experience and possibly return to the river with another family of cubs next year.

 

903 Gully

 

Identification

This young adult male has dark claws with light brown tips. His fur is light to dark brown and is especially grizzled on his neck and face.

Biography

Younger and smaller bears at Brooks River find themselves working through many of the same difficulties as larger adults but without regular access to the best fishing spots at the waterfall. This creates challenges for young bears as well as more chances for experimentation.

Most bears at Brooks River ignore birds. This causes gulls, especially, to lose their wariness around bears over time. The young 903 used the gulls’ habituation to bears to surprise flocks of birds in the water and capture birds for a meal. His hunting strategy was much like that used by a bear who charges into a school of fish to pluck an unlucky one from the water. Salmon appeared to remain 903’s top focus then and now, although his gull-hunting skills showcase the opportunism possessed by bears.

More recently, including this summer, 903 has become a prominent fixture on the lip of Brooks Falls where his still-increasing body size allows him to better withstand challenges for fishing space. 903 uses his adaptability and skill to find success among some challenging competition.

 

909

 

Identification

This adult female has light to medium-brown fur and very blond ears.

Biography

Bear 909 is part of a living, multi-generational legacy at Brooks River. Her mother, the 2018 Fat Bear Week Champion, Beadnose, taught 909 and her sibling 910 the utility of Brooks Falls. Beadnose was a proficient angler on the lip of the falls and her now adult offspring learned that lesson well. Bear watchers commonly see 909 on the lip catching salmon much in the same manner as her mother.

A unique family relationship developed between 909 and 910 in 2022. Although the sisters had cubs of different ages, they integrated into a group that traveled, foraged, rested, and played together. When 909 separated from her cub in spring 2023, the cub was soon adopted by 910. This year, 910 continued to care for 909’s biological cub, 909 Junior, the 2024 Fat Bear Junior champ.

As a lone female this summer, 909 experienced the advantage of greater independence. She fished with skill and focus, traits that are reflected in the size of 909’s waistline. Her skills, work ethic, and family legacy could be imparted on a new litter of cubs next year.