National Park Service
A broken jaw is not the kind of injury you want to deal with if you unknowingly find yourself in a competition called “Fat Bear Week.” However, a massive mammal known as “Chunk” was able to overcome that particular setback and end the reign of a rival who fell short in her quest for a threepeat.
Plenty of people pack on some extra pounds during the winter, but bears tend to gain hundreds of them while scarfing down as much food as possible to bulk up before they head into hibernation when the coldest part of the year rolls around.
That binge-eating spree, officially called “hyperphagia,” is on full display during the beloved tradition that is “Fat Bear Week,” which has been held on an annual basis at Katmai National Park and Reserve in Alaska since 2014.
The concept is pretty straightforward. The National Park Service (in conjunction with Explore.org) captures pictures of the brown bears at the center of the contest before and after they bulk up by fishing in the Brooks River, and people online get to vote on the bracket that’s used to determine which one has earned the right to call itself the Fat Bear Week champion.
There was a fair amount of drama surrounding last year’s contest due to some bear-on-bear murder, and the plot thickened after an animal responsible for another slaying overcame some adversity to claim the crown from the mother of the cub he killed while beating out the rival responsible for an injury that made him an underdog heading into this year’s event.
Chunk, a 1,200-pound behemoth recovering from a broken jaw, edged out the field to win “Fat Bear Week” after suffering a broken jaw
In 2024, the unveiling of the Fat Bear Week bracket was postponed after one of the bears that was slated to be included was killed by another competitor right before the lineup was going to be released. That transpired a few months after a bear dubbed “Chunk” attacked a cub belonging to Grazer, the 2023 Fat Bear Week champion, which died after falling off a waterfall during the assault.
According to Alaska Public Media, the ongoing saga of The Real Parkbears of Katmai took yet another turn over the summer when Chunk was spotted with a broken jaw, which rangers believe was the result of a fight during mating season. He entered this year’s hyperphagia period nursing an injury that may never fully heal, but that didn’t stop him from packing on some serious weight while ballooning to an estimated 1,200 pounds.
National Park Service
Chunk ended up meeting another Absolute Unit known only as “Bear 856” in the Fat Bear Week finals, and the former ultimately cruised to his first-ever victory by 32,625 votes.
Well done, Chunk. Well done.