Fat Bear Week 2022's winner is crowned with record number of votes!

King Salmon, Alaska - A record number of votes were cast to crown Bear 747 the corpulent champion of Fat Bear Week 2022, which celebrates how the brown bears of Katmai National Park and Preserve pack on the pounds for winter hibernation.

The champion of Fat Bear Week 2022 is Bear 747, also known affectionately as "Jumbo Jet" and "The Unit."
The champion of Fat Bear Week 2022 is Bear 747, also known affectionately as "Jumbo Jet" and "The Unit."

Fat Bear Week 2022 has come to a close, as voting ended Tuesday at 9 PM EST. The competition was stiff and votes came in from around the world.

Katmai National Park rangers announced the winner on social media, writing: "The votes are in - you’ve decided to upgrade to fish class & fly w/ 747."

The animal clocks in at a jaw dropping 1,400 pounds and may be one of the largest brown bears in the world.

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It's the second time the bear 747, whose ID number just happens to be the same as the super-sized aircraft, clenched enough votes to win. Nicknamed Jumbo Jet, Bear 747 is also known as the "Incredible Bulk" and "The Unit."

In 2022, 747's stunning mass beat out a newcomer to the bear bracket, the bulky sow – or female bear – number 901. Katmai rangers describe 901 as a "Go big or go home kind of bear." She made her mark on the competition by beating out fan favorite and four-time champ 480 Otis. But the fiercely independent sow, who rangers expect to emerge from hibernation this year with cubs, wasn't quite "fat enough" to stop 747's flight to the top.

On Twitter, the rangers joked, "747 was deemed an order of magnitude more massive than 901, who experienced troubling tummy turbulence enroute."

Fat Bear Week 2022 sees a record-breaking number of votes

Bear 901 made massive gains this summer, but her rolls weren't enough to get her the crown.
Bear 901 made massive gains this summer, but her rolls weren't enough to get her the crown.  © Katmai National Park and Preserve/ Courtesy of L. Law

A record number of votes came in for this year's 2022 Fat Bear Week, Mike Fitz of explore.org said during a Live Chat event Tuesday.

Over a million votes were cast for the bears over the course of the week. In the finals, 747 beat 901 by a whopping 11,229 more votes, per explore.org.

Fans continue to be fascinated by the animals' impressive weight gain, which is essential for their survival, as the bears can lose up to a third of their body weight during winter hibernation.

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Fitz said the "two Fat Bear Week finalists, bears 747 and 901, are quintessential examples of success in the supreme adaptation that bears possess to survive."

He added that Fat Bear Week exemplifies the healthy ecosystem of the park. "The salmon, represent a beacon of hope in a world that really is wounded by mass extinction and climate change. "

Fitz encouraged fans of the annual event to use Fat Bear Week "to remind ourselves that not all is lost."

"There is a lot to save everywhere and for everyone now and in the future if we work to do so together."

Cover photo: Katmai National Park and Preserve/Courtesy: Lian Law

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