Online voting began Tuesday for Fat Bear Week, an annual contest featuring brown bears from Alaska’s Katmai National Park competing for the title of fattest bear.

Last year’s winner, Bear 32, known as Chunk, weighed an estimated 1,200 pounds and is returning to defend his title against 15 other bears.

The 12th annual event celebrates the roughly 2,200 brown bears in the preserve and highlights how they build fat reserves by eating large amounts of salmon before winter hibernation.

The competition uses a single-elimination bracket, with voters choosing their favorites online based on photos, appearances and the bears’ individual stories, PBS has reported.

Chunk previously lost to Bear 128 Grazer in 2024 after a confrontation that resulted in the death of Grazer’s cub, but returned the following year to win the contest.