Bear attacks in Japan rise due to climate change

[Beringia]

Bear attacks have risen in Japan this year and sightings of the animals have spiked in the last six months, as climate change means they have left their natural habitat in the search for food.



A mother bear and a female cub appeared near an elementary school in Shari and were shot and killed by hunters Photo: AFP

At least four people were killed and 80 wounded in bear attacks between April and September, topping last year's total of 64 attacks, according to broadcaster NHK.

Some 400 bears were shot dead near human-populated areas by authorized hunters on Japan's far-northern island of Hokkaido alone, where two people were mauled to death by bears earlier this year, a local official said.

In the mountainous central prefecture of Fukushima, northeast of Tokyo, more than 150 bears were shot dead after they encroached on residential areas.

Some wildlife experts have blamed a record heatwave this summer which impacted the omnivores' natural food sources and sent the Asiatic black bears foraging for food in more densely populated farming and residential areas.

"The extremely hot summer and other climatic factors may have led to a shortage of acorns or nuts in woodlands this year," said Tatsuo Sato, an official of the Fukushima prefectural government.

In some areas habitat destruction is blamed for forcing the bears into closer contact with humans. In other parts, farms are being abandoned and reclaimed by nature, reducing buffer zone with the bears' natural habitats.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8075916/Bear-attacks-in-Japan-rise-due-to-climate-change.html


In Karuizawamachi, Nagano Prefecture, a nonprofit organization called Picchio tries to teach bears of the risks of approaching populated areas, without killing them. Bears that become caught in traps are harassed for a time by barking dogs and then released back to the wild, hopefully with a lesson learned.

Read more: http://www.theolympian.com/2010/10/23/1413983/intruding-bears-proving-too-much.html#ixzz13sOlXWQC
http://www.theolympian.com/2010/10/23/1413983/intruding-bears-proving-too-much.html

[chelsea0011]

1. Colbert is not gonna like this

"shot by hunters"? You can hunt in the city there?

[sally cat]

3. Mr. Ranger isn't gonna be too happy either. And it's global climate disruption now.

[Ian David]

2. I thought Godzilla ate all their bears. n/t

[Bobbieo]

4. Too many people taking up animal space!

[guardian]

5. No. That can't be the reason.

Don't you know...EVERYTHING is the result of AGW.

So,

If a bear shits in the woods, will Michael Mann examine the shit rings and prove global warming?