The bears at Katmai National Park and Reserve in Alaska have woken from their hibernation, and you can watch live as they hunt for sockeye salmon to fill their bellies after the long, cold winter.
Explore.org has started its annual livestream, with a camera trained on the falls where bears wait to catch the fish as they migrate upstream. The cameras are live 24 hours a day, but expect the animals to be particularly active around dawn and dusk.
Some of the park's many bears can consume over 30lb of salmon a day, so it shouldn't be too hard to spot some good catches. You can see the livestream below.
Seeing a bear in the wild is a thrilling experience, but one best appreciated from a very safe distance through binoculars (see our guide what to do if you meet a bear for advice on keeping safe in bear territory). The livestream gives you the opportunity to see the animals behaving completely naturally, with no risk of disturbance.
Keep a close eye out, and you might also catch sight of the occasional wolf or bald eagle sneaking in for its share of salmon.
A fat bear is a happy bear
As Mashable reports, later in the year the National Park and Reserve will be holding its annual Fat Bear Week contest, which celebrates the creatures' success in piling on the pounds over the warmer months. The fatter a bear becomes, the greater its chances of survival during hibernation when temperatures plummet.
When Fat Bear Week rolls around, you'll be invited to cast your vote for the tubbiest animal in an online poll, based on before and after photos illustrating their weight gain. The most successful at fishing (and gorging) earns a place in the Hall of Champions.
