Brown bears are big. I mean, BIG. You probably have to guess at the size, but would you guess “seven times the average American adult”?
That’s Chunk, at 1,200 pounds the runner-up in the annual Fat Bear Week, October 5 to 11 this year. The winner, Bear 747 (shown here), is one of the largest bears in the world, weighing as much as 1,400 pounds (636 kg).
Fat Bear Week is the amusing fan-vote elimination tournament run by Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve. The competition began in 2014 as Fat Bear Tuesday, and celebrates the park bears’ success getting ready for winter hibernation. It also secretly encourages conservation awareness.
It also shows the value of putting big numbers into perspective.
The October issue of my newsletter, Wordnerdery, looks at some of the comparisons used to show just how big the Fat Bear Week contestants area and how much they eat. I also share some other terrific analogies I’ve run across. Have a look and let me know in the comments if you have a better appreciation of bear size or if you’ve found any other interesting, helpful or just plain funny comparisons.
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