469 "Digger" / "Patches" June 19. 2015 NPS photo by Ranger Mike Fitz
Adult Male
Year First Identified: 2001 as an adult male
Year Last Observed: 2023
Known Offspring Of: Not known
Darting Attempts: There were no darting attempts (successful or unsuccessful) by Ranger Michael Saxton in 2016 or 2017.
Identification:[]
469 is a medium-large male bear. His claws are dark and he has short, round ears. His muzzle is blocky and straight. 469's coat is brown. His most distinctive feature is a blond, diamond shaped patch of mocha colored fur on his left shoulder.
Distinctive Behaviors:[]
From 2001 - 2011, 469 was an irregular user of the Brooks River and was only observed in the fall. At those times, he fished the lower Brooks River and in Naknek Lake, but he was usually only seen in the morning and would leave the area when human activity increased. This indicates that 469 is not tolerant of people.
In 2012, 469 was observed guarding a bear carcass in October 2012. (see the 2012 Life History section below for additional information)
In 2013, this pattern was broken and he was seen fishing regularly at Brooks Falls for the fist time in July, even when large numbers of people were watching from the Brooks Falls wildlife viewing platform. It is unknown why this bear changed his habits. (see 2013 Life History section below for additional information).
Life History:[]
2001: Adult Male[]
469 "Digger" / "Patches" was first identified as an adult male in 2001. He does not have an official nickname. In the 2012 section below, you can learn how the cam viewer unofficial nickname came to be. In 2001 469 was an irregular user of the Brooks River and was only observed in the fall. At those times, he fished the lower Brooks River and in Naknek Lake, but he was usually only seen in the morning and would leave the area when human activity increased. This indicates that 469 is not tolerant of people.
2006: Adult Male[]
September 2006:[]
2010: Adult Male[]
September 2010:[]
2010.09.03: NPS photos of 469 "Digger" / "Patches" and 879 having a play fight.
ADD PHOTOS HERE
2010.09.13: NPS photos of 469 "Digger" / "Patches" having a play fight with 879 .:
2012: Adult Male[]
September 2012:[]
October 2012:[]
In October 2012, 469 was observed guarding a bear carcass in the Lower Brooks River area. It is unknown whether or not 469 killed the other bear. 469's cache and his behaviors of consuming the cache were visible on the Explore live cams. 469 was quickly dubbed with the unofficial nickname "Digger" by the Explore bearcam viewing community.
2012.10.07 - 2012.10.09:
"On Sunday morning, October 7, biologists stationed at Brooks Camp noted that adult male Bear 469* (no nickname, but this is the one bearcam viewers called “Digger”) had apparently killed something and was in the process of caching it. A bear will often cache food when there is more than can be eaten at once. Salmon, for example, are typically not cached, but a moose would be. Throughout the day, Bear 469 added to, and rearranged his cache, and slept. Biologists later that day, (after the cams shut down), determined that the cache contained the remains of an unidentified bear.
Sometime after dark and before the biologists returned to the Lower River on Monday, October 8, another bear, Bear 814 (Lurch) arrived on the scene and took over Bear 469’s cache, chasing him off. Bear 469 was not killed, and was seen one additional time after the cache-building event. Throughout the day on Monday, Bear 814 was observed to be adding to and rearranging his cache.
On Tuesday morning, October 9, biologists once again observed the remains of a bear in the cache. Bear 814 was seen to periodically dig into the cache and pull out a part of the dead bear and eat it. When not eating, he slept and rearranged his cache. Most other bears continued to steer clear of Bear 814 and his well-guarded cache. Whether you are man or beast, stumbling upon a brown bear’s cache is one of the most dangerous situations to find yourself in. Bears know this all too well, but may initially be drawn close by the irresistible smell of rotting meat. You will sometimes see a bear walk past the bridge, and upon recognizing the cache and Bear 814, they turn and move away quickly."
Ranger Roy shares some information about the 2012 lower river cache that 469 initially was observed on in this October 2012 blog: The Violent Side of Nature
2013: Adult Male[]
When 469 arrived in 2013, he was limping badly and would not place any weight on his left hind leg. This injury may have reduced his ability to find food elsewhere, or he may have just discovered the fishing opportunities at Brooks Falls in July. Whatever the reason, 469 modified his behavior to fish at Brooks Falls. Bears, even older bears, are able to shift their habits and behaviors when it is necessary for survival.
July 2013:[]
2013.07.10: 469 can be observed beginning at approximately 1:00 into this video by dragonlainey. 469 leaves with a fish at approximately 2:56. A 2nd video, also filmed on 7/10/2013 shows 469 in a closeup view at 0:17, video by GC Photo Productions.
2013.07.??: (July 11, 2013 or prior):
469 can be seen in this highlights video by Explore:
2013.07.12: Ranger Jeanne has a flickr album for 469 that contains the following July 12, 2013 photos:
469 , 480 Otis (left foreground) 469 (right foreground) and 755 Scare D. Bear (left background) , 480 Otis (front) 469 (middle right) and 755 Scare D. Bear (left background) , 469 , 469 , 469 , 469 (foreground) , 469 (foreground) , 469 (foreground) , 469 , 469 , and 469 .
The KNP&P galleries page for 469 provides the following information for this July 12, 2013 photo of 469 :
"469 often has a distinctive diamond shaped patch of blondish fur on his left shoulder."
2013.07.13: Ranger Jeanne's July 13, 2013 photos in her 469 flickr album :
2013.07.14: Ranger Jeanne's July 14, 2013 photos in her 469 flickr album .
469 , 469 , 469 , 469, and 469
2013.07.15: Gux Lopez has July 15, 2013 photos of 469 in this album :
469 . 469 , 469 , 469 , 469 , 469 . 469 .
2013.07.18: Ranger Jeanne's July 18. 2013 photo of 218 Ugly (left) and 469 (right) foreground in her 469 flickr album .
The KNP&P galleries page for 469 provides this information about this photograph by Ranger Jeanne: "In this photo, #218 (left) approaches #469 (right). #469 was subordinate to #218 in July 2013. In this interaction, #218 is holding his ears erect indicating that he is the dominant bear, while #469 holds his ear back against his head."
2013.07.20: Ranger Jeanne's July 20, 2013 photos of 469 in her 469 flickr album :
2013.07.21: Ranger Jeanne's July 21, 2013 photo of 469 in her 469 flickr album .
2013.07.??: 469 can be seen in this video by Jacob Lavee:
Bears catching salmons in Brook's falls, Katmai National Park, Alaska July 2013 video by Jacob Lavee
2013.07.14: KNP&P Terrane blog "The Resilient Bear" by Ranger Mike Fitz includes a photo and information about 469 and his 2013 left hind leg injury:
469 in July 2013 NPS photo from The Resilient Bear blog by Ranger Mike Fitz
"This year #469, is frequently seen slowly moving around Brooks Falls. His left hind leg and foot are swollen. The bear moves slowly, using its three other legs as crutches. Even when standing still, the injured leg bears no weight.
In early July 2013, #469 arrived at Brooks Falls with a severe limp. This bear often had trouble moving through the river and maintaining prime fishing spots.
We don’t know how this bear was injured, nor do we know when he was injured. Since 2001, he has only been seen in the fall, never in July. Perhaps this change in habit is a result of the injury. #469 may have to take additional risks around other bears and people at Brooks Camp in order to eat and heal.
...Of course, we don’t yet know the outcome of #469’s story, but he may yet provide us with another example of a bear’s remarkable ability to adapt, heal, and survive."
2013.07.??: (July 22, 2013 or prior):
Ranger Mike Fitz and Ranger Roy Wood discuss 469's injury, healing, and chances of full recovery in this Explore video . 469 has been showing improvement over the past couple weeks or so. Park staff does not know if 469 will pull through this injury. 469 has survived the hardest time of the year, spring, when food resources are less available. Park staff does not know how or when 469 sustained his injury, they basically just know that when 469 was first observed in the 2013 season he had the injury to his left hind leg. 469 has recently been observed placing some weight on the injured leg when he is walking in the water or along the shore line. This video provides a visual comparison of how 469 was coping with the injury on both July 8, 2013 and July 21, 2013:
Mike and Roy also discuss 469 "Patches" recovery during this Explore video .:
2014: Adult Male[]
469 was included in the 2014 Bears of Brooks River book on page 21 :
469 was not officially observed by KNP&P bear monitoring staff during monitoring sessions.
September 2014:[]
2014.09.26: Cam viewers observed a bear that resembled 469:
NEED TO ADD SNAPSHOTS FROM 2014.09.26
2015: Adult Male[]
469 was included in the 2015 Bears of Brooks River book on page 60:
June 2015:[]
2015.06.19: 469 made one brief appearance at Brooks Falls in June 2015.
2015.06.22: Brooks Camp tweet re: 469's brief appearance on Friday, June 19, 2015 :
2016: Adult Male[]
469 was included in the 2016 Bears of Brooks River book on page 70 :
Fall 2016:[]
During fall 2016, a bear was spotted with a similar blond diamond shaped patch of fur on his left shoulder, though it is not certain that this bear was indeed 469. There is a possibility that the bear observed in fall of 2016 was actually 274 Overflow.
2017: Adult Male[]
469 was included in the 2017 Bears of Brooks River book on page 73:
June 2017:[]
2017.06.23 MAYBE: Cam viewer, GreenRiver captured these snapshots of the bear that was possibly 469 on June 23, 2017:
2017.06.23: Mickey Williams captured this video on June 23, 2017 at approximately 17:40. The bear near the "table rock" in the far pool resembles 469. Mickey noted that Mike Fitz felt that the bear observed in this video may possibly be 469. A firm ID of this bear has not been established to date.
5 4? pm 6.23.2017 469? maybe? near table rock Katmai National Park and Explore video by Mickey Williams
Brenda D captured this video on June 23, 2017 of the bear that could possibly be 469. Brenda noted that this bear showed up after 503 Cubadult headed down to the bend and 128 Grazer's family group was still up on the hill. Note: Video unavailable as of 2021. Thumbnail left for context.
CherylB (aka BearNecessities) captured this video on June 23, 2017 of the bear that could possibly be 469 fishing in closer proximity to the live cam.:
2017 06 23 00 32 30 MP4 I believe Patches 469
469 "Patches"/"Digger" June 23, 2017 video by CherylB (aka BearNecessities)
The Explore Recorder footage of the bear that could possibly be 469 fishing in closer proximity to the live cam begins at approximately 8:27 into this video :
Of note is the similarity of the bear in this July 2013 video by Jacob Lavee to the fishing style of the above bear when he was fishing in the same area in closer proximity to the live cam.
On June 23, 2017 Mike Fitz commented and shared a snapshot he captured of this bear after the bear changed fishing locations:
Cam viewer Shel gathered a wealth of additional information on this bear in this comment : (Thank you Shel)
On June 23, 2017 Shel gathered this information in this comment :
The bear observed on June 23, 2017 (1st snapshot) compared to July 2013 NPS photo of 469 and to July 2013 Explore video footage snips: 2nd snapshot of bear observed on June 23, 2017 , July 2013 Explore video snip #1 , July 2013 Explore video snip #2 , July 2013 Explore video snip #3 (These snapshots / photos / snip compare the left side):
Another (left side) June 23, 2013 snapshot by Shel of the bear observed on June 23, 2017 that was possibly 469 compared to a (left side) September 2012 NPS photo of 469 :
Shel documented comparison of the right side in this June 23, 2017 snapshot of the bear that could possibly be 469 compared to this (right side) July 2013 NPS photo of 469 and this June 23, 2017 snapshot compared to this (right side) July 2013 NPS photo of 469: :
Shel also documented comparison of the head, front profile, and shoulder patch position in this snapshot of the bear observed on June 23, 2017 that could possibly be 469 to this (head / front profile / shoulder patch position) June 21, 2015 NPS photo by Ranger Mike Fitz :
On June 25, 2017, former KNP&P ranger Mike Fitz commented about Shel's June 23, 2017 documentation on the comparison of the bear observed on June 23rd to prior season documented NPS photos and Explore video footage of 469.
"That's a great comparative series of photos. I think the bear we watched on 6/23 shares many physical similarities with 469. I'm not convinced it is 469, but I'm leaning in that direction. I'd like to hear what Ranger Dave or Leslie have to say. "
Cam viewer, JG located and shared this Brooks Camp. Katmai National Park, June 2017 blog by Bear and Penguin Photography that includes a photograph of this bear from the same time period in June 2017. If you scroll down in the blog to the photo below the photo of 128 Grazer grazering another bear, you will see the photo of the bear that could possibly be 469 taken by the park visitor that created the blog.
Park visitor, Ken Hikfiker captured footage of the bear that is possibly 469 beginning at approximately 4L44 into this video : Note: this video is no longer available.
2018: Adult Male[]
469 was included in the 2018 Bears of Brooks River book on page 74.
.jpg "469 page 74 2018 Bears of Brooks River book (information section only).jpg (275 KB)")
October 2018:[]
2019.10.??: There was a "brief sighting" of 469 in October of 2018, as noted in the 2019 Bears of brooks River book on page 73. No photos are available and 469 did not appear on the bear monitor's list.
2019: Adult Male[]
469 was included in the 2019 Bears of Brooks River Book on page 73.
.jpg "469 page 73 2019 Bears of Brooks River book (information section only).jpg (261 KB)")
2019 Season:[]
Amy Bragg Photography captured this photograph of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" during the 2019 season that has a good view of 469's front teeth and 469's left ear that appears to be missing the center of the tip..
August 2019:[]
2019.08.08: Early in the morning on August 8, 2019, 469 appeared in the riffles. At the time it was not known who the bear was. 469 can be seen charging 151 Walker and then proceeding down towards Brooks Falls, video by Lani H. 469 had not been observed on the web cams except for a "possible" sighting in 2017, but was not on the Bear Monitor list for that year.
469 was observed 4 more times on 8/8/2019, at the falls (video by Lani H), with the unknown "Hump Bear", now known as 18, (video by Lani H) having words with 89 Backpack (video by Lani H) and in the evening on the lower river (video by mckate). Mckate also captured this video of 469 with 801 and 480 Otis in the far pool. 469 is noted to have numerous scars, a small white scar on top of his rump, above his left eye, and others on his face, chest and neck.
Birgitt captured this video of 469 "Patches"/"Digger" getting testy with 83 Wayne Brother.:
Mike Fitz narrated a Play-by-Play on 8/8/2019. At the end of the video (at 57:41) Mike Fitz discusses the return of 469 Patches to Brooks Falls after he had not been observed in a number of years. Video by Brenda D is queued to begin at 57:41 in the above link. Note: This video is no longer available.
2019.08.09: On 8/9/2019, 469 Patches can be seen in the early morning fishing in the far pool with 18, video by Lani H.
469 was seen for a 2nd time on 8/9/2019, fishing in the far pool with 480 Otis, video by Lani H .
BMDdad captured this snapshot of 801 (left) with 480 Otis (center) and 469 "Patches"/"Digger" (right) (p 03/01/2020 07:29 ).:
2019.08.10: On 8/10/2019 68 and 469 interact in the jacuzzi with 68 eventually deciding to move out, video by Lani H
Twice on 8/10/2019, 469 approached 747 in hopes of possibly pirating a fish. 469 settled for 747's scraps. Video #1 and video #2 by Lani H.
469 is seen in the jacuzzi on 8/10/2019. Subadult 812 passes by and 469 proceeds to chase him to the island where 469 proceeds to cowboy walk. There is no further interaction, video by Victoria White.
469 "Patches" in the far pool with the unidentified adult male (now known as 18) video by Birgitt.:
2019.08.11: This 8/11/2019 video by Ratna Narayan shows 469 Patches sitting behind 747 in the jacuzzi hoping to obtain any fish scraps. 747 is clearly not pleased with 469 sitting behind him as can be observed towards the end of the video.
Also on 8/11/2019, 469 Patches was seen fishing on the lower river, video by Lani H.
469 "Patches" departing on LR video by Birgitt.:
On 8/11/2019 in response to a question in chat "When Patches was a regular, prior to his injury, was he a dominant bear? Looked like 68 yielded to him yesterday?" Mike Fitz replied:"469 is a large adult male, so given that fact alone he is going to rank high in the hierarchy. Most often 469 is only seen in early fall when food is more dispersed and bears aren't congregating at the falls as frequently. He's really never been a regular visitor to Brooks Falls in July. The only time he ever spent fishing at Brooks Falls in July was in 2013 when he had an injured leg which would have hindered his ability compete with other bears."
2020: Adult Male[]
October 2020:[]
2020.10.10: In the early morning hours of 10/10/2020, a large, dark male bear was seen snorkeling on the river watch cam. A noticeable blonde patch was seen on the left shoulder. The head profile and the blonde patch closely resembled 469 "Patches." Could 469 have returned to Brooks Camp late in the season as he did in October 2018? 10/10/2020 video by Lani H.
Mazey shared 2 screenshots on 10/10/2020, #1 and #2.
Lani H posted this question to Mike Fitz, "Does this look like 469 Patches to you?"
Mike responded "The bear is distinctly similar to 469 with its diamond-shaped shoulder patch, body size, and blocky muzzle. In the low light I can't commit to saying it is him. It certainly could be though."
2021: Adult Male, Possibly the Oldest Bear Currently Known to Use The River[]
469 was included in the 2022 Bears of Brooks River book page 72.
The 2022 Bears of Brooks River book noted that "While he (469) has not been identified during bear monitoring sessions from 2019-2021. there were several credible sightings of him on the bear cams in fall of 2021. He, along with #477, were likely the oldest bears to use the river last year."469 "Digger"/"Patches" is not observed frequently using the Brooks River, but is recognizable when he does use the river due to the "patch" on his left shoulder. 469 may possibly be the oldest bear currently known to use the Brooks River as a food source.
August 2021:[]
2021.08.04: 469 "Patches" returns to Brooks Camp and is not so welcomed by 480 Otis, 801, and 151 Walker, 8/4/2021 video by JG.
Mckate's 8/4/2021 video, 469 "Patches" arrives. "When a bear is as old and as intermittent in his appearances as 469, you don't hold your breath about ever getting to see him again. But here he is looking as impressive as ever!"
469 "Patches" and 480 Otis, Grumpy Old Boars video by mckate, 8/4/2021.
151 Walker and 469 "Patches" meet, 8/4/2021 video by mckate. "151 seemed like he wanted to challenge 469 a little and there was a fair amount of jaw popping. Then 469 decided that was enough of that nonsense and just sat down. I wonder if 151 was a somewhat relieved?"
MaryMcD created this gif of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" (right) and 480 Otis (left). 469 "Digger"/"Patches" was observed at Brooks Falls in the afternoon. Blackjack55 captured this snapshot. Blair-55 created this gif. Blair-55 also created this gif. Tzusrule created this gif of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" (left) and 480 Otis (right).:
2021.08.05: 469 "Digger"/"Patches" displaces 747 video by JG.
September 2021:[]
2021.09.16: Could this have been 469 "Patches" on 9/16/2021. Mazey captured two Screenshots, #1 and #2. It is difficult to confirm this is 469 in the low light but photo #2 does appear to have a diamond shaped patch on the left shoulder.
October 2021:[]
2021.10.01: Goldilocks,Canada captured three screenshots on 10/1/2021 of a bear who may have been 469 "Patches", #1 , #2 and #3. "469/Patches was very briefly on the RW cam, just after the cams went live. I managed to get a few pics showing his “patch”. And one showing his notched left ear."
2021.10.07: 469 "Patches" returns after not being seen for about 2 months (unless the 9/16/2021 and 10/1/2021 possible sightings of him were correct). video by mckate on 10/7/2021. "856 sure made note of his return!"
856 confronts 469 Patches in the far pool, 10/7/2021 video by JG. He gives 469 a fairly gentle reminder with a few swats that he is more dominant.
469 "Patches" in the far pool, 10/7/2021 video by JG.
2021.10.08: 469 Patches is seen front right at the very beginning of this 10/8/2021 video by Hey Princess. He is seen at various times, note the bright diamond shaped patch on his left shoulder.
2022: Adult Male - 469 Was Not Observed in 2022[]
469 Digger/Patches was included in the 2022 Bears of Brooks River book on page 72. While 469 has not been identified during official bear monitoring sessions from 2019-2021, there were several credible sightings of him on the bear cams in fall of 2021. He, along with #477, were likely the oldest bears to use the river in 2021.
2023: Adult Male[]
October 2023:[]
2023.10.01: 469 "Digger"/"Patches" was observed in the lower river very early this morning while the infrared feature of the live cams were still on.
Birgitt captured these snapshots (#1, #2 & #3) of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" (RW rewind p 14:25).:
mckate captured this video:
1 Oct 2023- 469 Arrives with His Diamond Shining Bright (explore.org)
video by mckate
469 "Digger"/"Patches" video captured by Senushka:
01 October 2023. This bear 469 Patches (explore.org).
of video by Senushka
LaBelleCorisande captured this video of 469 "Digger"/"Patches":
469 Patches arrives! 2023-10-01 c. 8am RW explore.org
video by LaBelleCorisande
2023.10.02: 469 "Digger"/"Patches" was observed again in the wee hours of the morning in the lower Brooks River. He was seen at approximately 3:33 AM AKDT and 4:08 AM AKDT.
Toodlebug captured this snapshot of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" at 03:33 AKDT from the River Watch cam (Explore RW Gallery). SundogsNM captured this snapshot of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" from approximately 04:08 AM AKDT (p 09:14 from RW rewind approx 5 hrs):
Terry Miller (aka SundogsNM) captured this video of 469 "Digger"/"Patches" in the lower river in the early morning hours thanks to the infrared feature of the live cams:
02 Oct 2023- 469 Patches overnight on lower river (explore.org)
video by Terry Miller (aka SundogsNM)
2023.10.04: 469 "Digger"/"Patches" was observed fishing the lower river again in the wee hours of the morning. Laura created this gif (p 03:02 rewind approx 45 mins).:
Senushka captured this video:
04 October 2023. I wonder who this night fisherman is? (explore. org)
469 "Digger"/"Patches" video by Senushka
2023.10.05: 469 "Digger"/"Patches" was successfully fishing in the lower river (RW) at approximately 07:40 AM AKDT.
How 469 "Digger"/"Patches" Got His Unofficial Nicknames:[]
469 does not have an official nickname.
469 was dubbed "Digger" in October 2012 when he was observed with a cache containing a bear carcass in the lower river. This is an UNOFFICIAL nickname.
469 was dubbed "Patches" due to his diamond shaped patch of lighter fur on his left shoulder. This is an UNOFFICIAL nickname.
Known Courting & Mating:[]
Add here
Known Relatives:[]
At this time there are no known relatives of 469 "Digger" / "Patches",
Darting Attempts:[]
There were no darting attempts (successful or unsuccessful) by Ranger Michael Saxton in 2016 or 2017. It is not known to us if 469 was darted in prior genetics studies done at KNP&P / Brooks Camp.