Deadly Bear โขAttacks โRise in Japan asโ Animals Lose Fear of Humans
TOKYO, JAPAN – A surge in โฃbear attacks is causing alarm in โJapan, fueled by a rapidly growing bear population and a concerning loss of natural fear of humans among younger animals.Recent incidents have involved increasingly aggressive encounters,โ with bears exhibiting behavior previously unseen, according too medical professionals.
The number of brown bearsโข in โคJapan has doubledโ in the last 30 years, reachingโ approximately 12,000 currently, according to government figures. โThe โขpopulation of Asian black bears, also known โas collared bears, on the main island of Honshu has risen to 42,000.
Experts attribute this populationโค boom to several factors. An โคabundant โคfood supply, particularly acorns, is becoming more common due to climate change. Simultaneously, a declining and aging hunting population has led โto increased numbers ofโ deer โขand wild boar – typicalโ bear prey.
“In some regions, theโ bear population is now soโ large that theโ mountains no longer offer enough space,” explains Naokiโฃ Ohnishi, an expert fromโ the Japanese Research Institute for Forestry and Forest Products. The increasing depopulation of rural areas is also โdriving bears into abandoned villages โin โคsearch of food.
This year, a shortage of โขacorns is exacerbating the problem, forcing bears to venture into โpopulated areas. “In search of food, the bears roam through villages and cities,”โค says Shinsuke Koike, a professor at the โUniversity of Agriculture and Technology in Tokyo. This increasedโ contact isโ leading toโฃ a dangerous โฃtrend: young bears are losing their naturalโข fear ofโ people.
Dr. Hajime โNakae,professor of emergency and intensive care medicine at the University Hospital in Akita,has observed a shift in bear attack patterns. “In theโ past, a startled bear would usually onlyโฃ give a person a blow with its paw and then flee.โ Today it is indeed more common for bears toโ ‘rush towards โคyou โขfrom ten meters away and jump on you.'”
In response, the Japanese โgovernment has announced increased hunting measures. Soldiers have been deployed to Akita and Iwate prefectures to provide logistical support for โขbear โhunting, including setting traps. Police have also been โฃauthorized to shoot bears.
Researcher Ohnishi emphasizes that “thorough hunting is the โonlyโ effective way to reduce the danger from bears in the long term.” however, the situation may temporarily ease as bears begin to hibernate in the coming months.
(Source:โ ntv.de,Hiroshi Hiyama and Caroline Gardin,AFP)