Nature The Japanese brown and black bear thread

As many as eight in 10 brown bear cubs born this year in a remote part of northern Japan have died amid a shortage of salmon, with experts blaming rising sea temperatures caused by the climate crisis. Along with acorns, pink salmon are an important source of food for the estimated 500 brown bears living along Hokkaido's Shiretoko peninsula, a Unesco world heritage site known for its dramatic coastline and wild animals. Local officials reacted with alarm after a tour boat operator spotted a starving bear cub desperately searching for food on the peninsula's eastern coast this month. The bear was reportedly turning over rocks and rummaging through piles of beached seaweed in search of food.

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In the 2000s, such sightings became common, even in central districts of urban areas. In the past, only certain individual bears made repeated appearances. Now, multiple groups are making their presence known across a range of districts in Sapporo, often simultaneously. This may be due to the fact that they grow up close to adjacent suburbs. Hokkaido is home to a shrinking population of farmers and hunters due to declining resident numbers and the advancing aging of society. That may explain the growing boldness of the animals as they expand their habitat into zones near residential districts. Sapporo has entered a phase of population decline like other rural parts of Hokkaido and is no longer immune to the bear problem. "Brown bears are adapting to human society," Sato warned.

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Rakuno Gakuen University Professor Sato Yoshikazu, an expert on bear ecology, advises people to be aware of areas that are inhabited by bears and places nearby. He says in such locations, people should avoid entering forests or mountains alone. When they do go into such places, they should make noises while walking with items like whistles and even carry bear spray.

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Two men in their 40s suffered minor injuries including scratches on their sides and necks, as well as bites on the legs inflicted by the 1.7-meter-tall bear, but all three descended the mountain under their own power. According to the Hokkaido Prefectural Government's brown bear countermeasures office, the three men all reside in Hokkaido. The last person walking in a single file line was attacked by the animal at around 9:30 a.m. -- some 2 1/2 hours after the three left the trailhead. Another person drove off the bear but two sustained injuries.

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• ■As for the damage number of people, 180 people are updating the most in history in the whole country
  The damage due to the bear occurs successively in the whole country.
  50 generations and a man in his 70s were attacked during work to cut the tree of persimmon in Toyama-shi on 16th by a bear. It is a serious wound such as injuring a face. I have not known the whereabouts of the bear yet.
  According to Ministry of the Environment, the damage number of people from April to October is 180 in the whole country. Since statistics start, I continue updating the most in history.

The year now coming to a close was the worst since 2006 for bear attacks in Japan. The Environment Ministry, citing preliminary figures, said Dec. 1 there were 193 attacks between April and November that left 212 casualties, including six people dead. Based on records kept since fiscal 2006, this was the worst year for bear attacks, the ministry added. Bears usually go into hibernation from late November to December. But there have been cases of bears causing damage from December to March.

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On average over the past five years, 4,895 have been killed each year, according to figures from the Environment Ministry. As of November 30, 6,287 have died in this fiscal year (to March), around 2,000 of them in November alone. Usually, they are shot.

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Tanaka says his project in Karuizawa, a town surrounded by woods in the shadow of a volcano 90 minutes from Tokyo by bullet train, is a "forerunner" of what can be done without resorting to killing the bears. In the dead of night -- when the bears are most active -- Tanaka demonstrates the methods used by his organisation, which he says keeps both humans and bears safe. He and his team set barrel traps, with honey inside, to capture any bears that start to lose their fear of humans. They are fitted with a radio collar and released, far away. The town has also installed bear-proof rubbish collection points -- the slot for the door handle is too small for a paw -- and appealed to locals to be more aware. But the key component in the non-lethal efforts is Tanaka's amber-eyed, keen-nosed canine Rela and the rest of the team of specially trained Karelian Bear Dogs, a sturdy and fearless breed originally from Finland.

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Yuko Murotani, chief of the Japan Bear and Forest Society, said the government should focus on measures to separate the habitat of bears from that of humans, instead of culling the animals. The environment group based in Hyogo Prefecture collected 14,749 signatures from people opposed to the policy and submitted them to the ministry in February.

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johnnyG said:

Can't extract the (good!) video, so you'll have to watch it in this reddit thread:

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johnnyG said:

I think there's some saying like, if black, fight back, if brown, lay down...

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Since the program's launch in 2004, it has reported an extraordinary reduction in the damages and incidents involving bears. There have been no bear attacks in town for over a decade, according to Amelia Hiorns, a researcher from Picchio. "Our management system involves a variety of mitigation techniques. So, the bear dogs, electric fences, bear-proof bins, and a community engagement program so that people can understand how to kind of interact and coexist with nature as well," Hiorns said. "We have to accept the bears as much as we can. And obviously [bears] have to accept humans to an extent as well.

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thomas said:

The article does not seem to mention what happened to the bears.

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