09/26/2026
How do you catch a fish without a fishing pole?
With your bear hands.
We’re here all week, folks. So is Fat Bear Week! For bears, fishing styles are often learned behaviors. Some bears have mastered many, while others stick to the one that work best for them. At Brooks River in Alaska's Katmai National Park & Preserve, you can observe many types of fishing styles including:
🐻 The Stand and Wait: Bears stand on top the falls and wait for salmon to jump close enough to catch. Bears sometimes slip on the falls (usually when someone is looking) so they rarely shift position. Sometimes they misjudge and the fish hits the bear in the face. (Insert own metaphor for life)
🐻 The Sit and Wait: Similar to the first one but sitting. Bears sit underneath Brooks Falls in the plunge pool or “jacuzzi,” and wait for salmon to swim to them.
🐻 The Dash and Grab: Bears chase the fish and attempt to pin them to the river bottom with their paws. Fast-food on the go!
🐻 The Snorkeler: Bears look for fish under the water while seeing who can make the most bubbles.
🐻 The Diver: Some bears avoid getting their ears wet, so diving is not for every bear. However there are some that will submerge themselves completely underwater to obtain food resources. You do what you got to do.
🐻 The Pirate: Arrgggg! It’s Cap’n Bruin Brownbeard the Hungry! Pirating bears plunder already caught fish from other bears. Keep an eye on the horizon. Avast ye scurvy bear! I’ve come for the fishes!
🐻 The Sharer: Bears do not usually share food with others (bearing is NOT sharing), but some will share the spoils. (Not the Cap’n) This interaction occurs between bears that are highly tolerant of each other. BFFs (bear fish friends!)
🐻 The Belly Flop: A big splash requires big bear air, as the bear springs up out of the water or launches off the side to take a fish by surprise. This can be extremely successful or, well, a flop.
Image: A bear perfecting the belly flop at Katmai National Park & Preserve. NPS /M. Bradburn
