A polar bear that is about 190 kilograms (420 pounds) overweight has been given a new nickname by local residents (and it’s not particularly flattering). If the average polar bear weighs around 450 kilograms (990 pounds), this one comes in at a whopping 680 kilograms (1,500 pounds). Many claim this makes him one of the fattest in the world, earning him the nickname Fat Albert.

Meet Fat Albert, perhaps the fattest polar bear alive. – Photo Source: @natgeo

How did it gain so much weight?

It turns out that residents of Cactovik in Alaska, where Albert lives, pull many fish from the sea and leave them out for bears as a gesture of respect. And it looks like Albert was taking a little more than his fair share.

Photographer Edward Bidrow, who filmed Fat Albert, explains that locals also haul a whale ashore, cut up the meat, and leave it about four kilometres outside the city so polar bears can find it.

They do this for two reasons. The first is practical: it prevents bears from wandering into the city, destroying crops, or approaching homes. The second is cultural: it shows respect for the bears, which have lived in these regions for thousands of years.

Although Fat Albert has gained weight and may be the fattest polar bear alive today, he is still far from the 1960 world-record bear that weighed 1,001 kilograms (2,207 pounds). If Albert hopes to break that record, he still has some catching up to do.