Fat Bear Week: Vote for Alaska's chunkiest bear by Oct. 10

Fat Bear contestant 128 Grazer (Lian Law/NPS Photo)

Competition lovers across the country might have their attention locked on this weekend's start to the MLB playoffs, but a national park in Alaska offers an alternative bracket that aims to name a champion far fatter and furrier than anything found on a baseball diamond. 

Wednesday marked the beginning of Fat Bear Week in Katmai National Park, reports Bill Chappell for NPR. The competition places a dozen local brown bears on a March-madness style bracket and starting at noon ET every day online visitors get to vote for the contestant they want to advance to the next round. The championship will be announced Oct. 11 — Fat Bear Tuesday. 

"Contestants are tracked by their numbers, but veteran animals are known by names like the large male Chunk, or the blond-eared female Holly," Chappell writes. "Then there's 747 — who doesn't need a nickname because his number and size both echo the famous jumbo jet. This year's defending champ, Otis, also won the first Fat Bear contest eight years ago."

The contest celebrates the bears' seasonal transformation as they gain weight to prepare for winter hibernation. "Hibernating bears stay healthy despite being very fat and sedentary. New research is focusing on what humans can learn from them," The Washington Post reports.

The New York Times explains how the contest began. Fans can keep track of bears on park webcams and in a recent video, park staff and naturalist Mike Fitz offered a breakdown of the 2022 field.