Brown Bear Running in Shallow River, Katmai
Katmai National Park and Preserve
A brown bear runs through a shallow river channel in Katmai, water kicked up around its legs. Bears shifting between fishing spots along the river often cut straight through the shallows rather than taking the bank, because staying in the water keeps them closer to any salmon that break cover ahead of them. Every part of a Katmai bear's late-summer behavior is tuned to the salmon run, and the fitter bears are the ones that know the river and their own strengths best. Brown bear, Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Ursus arctos. Photo © copyright by Carl Donohue.