The live stream featuring bears in Alaska has been viewed 7.3 million times
A live stream featuring brown bears catching salmon near Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park in Alaska was viewed 7.3 million times between June 22 and August 4. That’s 70% more than during the same period last year and more than double the figure from 2024, according to The Guardian World.
Cameras from the Explore.org network show brown bears gathering near the waterfall to catch sockeye salmon swimming upstream. At any given moment, more than a dozen bears can be seen in the frame, wading through the rocky shallows and eating fish.
Candice Rush, director of new media at Explore.org, attributed the increase in viewership to the fact that large groups of bears are gathering near the waterfall this year. According to her, last year’s salmon run was particularly large, so fish were spread throughout the river, and the bears did not need to congregate near Brooks Falls as they are doing now.
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The cameras were installed in 2012 to allow people to observe remote wildlife. The livestream has attracted a loyal following: viewers can distinguish individual bears by the shape of their ears, noses, and body structure, and they keep records of the bears’ diets. One fan of the stream reported that a bear named Otis ate 42 salmon in just a few hours; according to Rush’s estimate, that could amount to over 100,000 calories.
This fall, Katmai will host its annual Fat Bear Week competition. The public votes in a knockout contest to select the park’s fattest bear as the animals put on weight before hibernation.
