Bear encounters increasing in Japan's urban areas

Straits Times

a day ago

A sign with a bear warns "Do not enter'", near a chicken coop in Sunagawa, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan.
IWATE/ HOKKAIDO, Japan — Bears are increasingly entering human-inhabited areas and attacking people living there.
In July, two people were killed each in Iwate and Hokkaido prefectures. Depopulation and expansion of abandoned farmland have brought bear habitats closer to urban areas, leading to an increase in 'urban bears,' unafraid of humans. Measures to prevent encounters between bears and residents are urgently needed.
Obsessed with garbage
'I'm afraid to go outside. I've been living here for 20 years, but this is the first time something like this has happened,' said a 70-year-old man in the town of Fukushima, Hokkaido, his voice trembling.
In the early hours of July 12, a 52-year-old man delivering newspapers was attacked and killed by a brown bear. The incident occurred in a residential area about 700 meters from the town office; the victim was found dead after being dragged into the grass.
Even after the incident was reported, the bear had damaged a nearby supermarket's garbage storage site and no children could be seen playing outdoors.
This was Hokkaido's first fatal brown bear attack in an urban area since 2006, when the Environment Ministry began keeping statistics.
The brown bear, estimated to be an eight- to nine-year-old male measuring 208cm in length and weighing 218kg, was culled by hunters on July 18.
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Even more shocking to residents and experts was the DNA analysis results revealing that the same bear had attacked and killed a woman - then 77 - in a field about 3km away four years ago.
'There have been no cases of a bear repeatedly appearing in an urban area. The bear might have been obsessed with the garbage in urban areas,' said Mr Yoshikazu Sato, professor of wildlife ecology at the Rakuno Gakuen University.
Attacked inside a residence
According to a survey conducted by the ministry from fiscal 2016 to 2018, over half of human injuries and deaths caused by bears nationwide occurred in forests.
In fiscal 2023, however, more than 50 per cent occurred in urban areas, places near residences or on farmland, and in fiscal 2024, nearly 40 per cent occurred in such areas. This indicates that bears are increasingly entering human-inhabited areas.
One of the factors is the expansion of bear habitats.
Since the 1980s, regulations on bear hunting have been implemented across the country, while abandoned farmland has increased due to depopulation and aging of residents, creating more bushes where bears can hide.
On July 4, an 81-year-old woman was attacked and killed by an Asian black bear that had entered her home in a village near forests and farmland in the Waga district of Kitakami, Iwate Prefecture.
According to the ministry, 50 people have been killed by bears nationwide over the past two decades, but this is believed to be the first case in which a victim was killed inside a residence.
Nearby, bears appeared to have eaten rice stored in sheds on residential properties and damaged warehouse walls.
Mr Koji Yamazaki, professor of animal ecology at the Tokyo University of Agriculture, pointed out: 'The environment where bears can thrive is changing. In order to prevent humans from being attacked, it is urgent to investigate the causes and implement countermeasures.'
Acorn shortages
One reason behind bears coming into urban areas is the poor acorn harvest in the autumn of 2023.
Bears that scavenged through locations such as garbage collection sites might have learned that they can find food there and settled in human living areas. Traditionally, bears were more likely to appear in urban areas in autumn, but in recent years, they have been seen year-round.
From April to June this year, a total of 37 people were killed or injured by bears across the nation — almost the same pace as fiscal 2023, which saw a record number of incidents.
This autumn, a severe shortage of Japanese beech trees that bear acorns is expected in six prefectures in the Tohoku region, according to the Tohoku Regional Forest Office and others.
This could cause more bears to enter urban areas.
Mr Kazuhiko Maita, director of the Institute for Asian Black Bear Research and Preservation based in Hiroshima Prefecture, warned: 'Bears no longer fear humans and the level of danger is increasing. If food shortages cause bear density in urban areas to increase, we must be more vigilant than ever about harm to humans.' THE JAPAN NEWS/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK