The winner of Fat Bear Week is …
Listen to story (Irish accent)
At Alaska's Katmai National Park and Preserve, a mother bear named Grazer became the winner of Fat Bear Week.
Fat Bear Week is an annual competition that attracts thousands of people from around the world. People vote online for the fattest bear in Katmai. This year, a total of 1.4 million votes came in from 100 countries, according to the park's staff.
Bear 128, also known as Grazer, received 108,321 votes in the final round of Fat Bear Week.
Grazer is an 18-year-old female bear with light brown fur and blond ears. Grazer is famous for her strength and is one of the top salmon fishers in Katmai. She beat the second place bear, Chunk, by 85,187 votes.
Boak, who photographs and livestreams the bears during the competition, estimates that Grazer is well over 800 pounds (363 kg).
For female bears, having more fat is important because it means they can have more cubs. Grazer has already raised some cubs.
Fat Bear Week started as a way to celebrate the bears at Katmai as they gain weight during the year. Mike Fitz, from explore.org, had the idea to change it to a weeklong competition in 2015.
The bears in Katmai are preparing to hibernate from the end of October until March or April. In this period before hibernation the bears always feel hungry because of a chemical change in their bodies.
Vocabulary26 words
- National park
- A park or land that is protected by a country's government
- Annual
- every year; yearly
- Competition
- contest; game to find the best or a winner; tournament
- Attract
- to cause something to come toward something else; to pull or draw someone or something toward them
- Thousand
- 1,000 = one-thousand
- Vote
- to give your opinion and make an official choice; a way of making a decision by asking a group of people
- Million
- 1,000,000 - one-million
- According to
- as ‘someone’ said; as stated by ‘someone’; in the opinion of ‘someone’
- Also known as (AKA)
- a phrase used to introduce an alternative name; used for showing someone has another name
- Receive
- get; take in; accept; encounter;
- Round
- A stage in a competition; one part of a competition or tournament
- Female
- woman; girl; a person/animal that can produce eggs and give birth to young
- Fur
- The soft hair that covers the bodies of some animals
- Top
- the highest point or rank; the best
- Fisher
- Someone who catches fish
- Beat
- to defeat an opponent or win a competition; to win a match/game against another person/team
- Place
- position or rank in a competition/tournament; 1st place, 2nd place, 3rd place, etc.
- Photograph
- to take pictures
- Livestream
- To show something happening in real-time over the internet
- Estimate
- guess; approximate; judge; suppose
- Cub
- a young animal, especially a lion, tiger, or bear
- Raise
- To take care of a child or animal until it is grown up
- Celebrate
- to mark or remember an important event, especially with enjoyable activities
- Gain weight
- to become heavier; to get fat
- Hibernate
- When animals sleep through the winter to save energy
- Period
- a length of time; or portion of time
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
At Alaska's Katmai _____ Park and Preserve, a mother bear named Grazer _____ the winner of Fat Bear Week.
Fat Bear Week is an _____ competition that attracts thousands of people from _____ the world. People vote online for the _____ bear in Katmai. This year, a total of 1.4 million votes came in from 100 _____, according to the park's _____.
Bear 128, also known as Grazer, _____ 108,321 votes in the final round of Fat Bear Week.
Grazer _____ an 18-year-old female bear with light brown fur and blond ears. Grazer is _____ for her strength and is one of the _____ salmon fishers in Katmai. She beat the second-place bear, Chunk, by 85,187 _____.
Boak, who _____ and livestreams the bears during the competition, estimates that Grazer is _____ over 800 pounds (363 kg).
For female _____, having more fat is important because it means they can have more _____. Grazer has already raised some cubs.
Fat Bear Week _____ as a way to celebrate the bears at Katmai as they gain weight _____ the year. Mike Fitz, from explore.org, had the idea to _____ it to a weeklong competition in 2015.
The bears in Katmai are _____ to hibernate from the end of October until March or April. In this period _____ hibernation the bears always feel hungry because of a _____ change in their bodies.
Discussion questions
- What do you think about the idea of having a competition like Fat Bear Week? Why are so many people interested in it?
- Do you think an event like this helps the bears? How?
- What other animals might benefit from having a similar competition?
- Will you watch and vote next year?
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