Record bear sightings in Japan cause alarm as hibernation ends

Rested but famished bears emerging from hibernation in Japan are already coming into contact with humans, with the pace of sightings outstripping that seen in 2025, a record year for bear attacks.According to media reports, the animals have been spotted with surprising frequency in urban areas in the country’s north-east, with authorities urging caution among people planning to spend the coming Golden Week public holidays in the countryside.In 2026 there has already been one possible fatal mauling after the body of a woman was found last week in the prefecture (county) of Iwate, soon after a police officer was injured in a bear attack nearby.Bells and whistles: how our reporter prepared for visiting bear hotspot – videoWith winter just over, police have been called to populated areas following sightings near apartment buildings, a warehouse and a railway station.In Aomori, a prefecture on the northern tip of Japan’s main island, local authorities on 1 April issued a special warning about the presence of Asiatic black bears after five were spotted in the space of 10 days. Two north-eastern prefectures, Iwate and Fukushima, have issued similar alerts, according to the Asahi Shimbun.The sightings have raised fears of another year of anxiety among residents of north-east Japan and Hokkaido, the country’s northernmost main island.In the 12 months from April last year, Japan saw a record 238 bear attacks, including 13 deaths. Most of the incidents occurred in the six prefectures that make up the Tohoku region of north-east Japan.Earlier this month, a dozen police officers in a Fukushima prefecture town pursued a bear in a neighbourhood where residents said the animals had never been a concern.The bear, weighing 100-120kg, was involved in a long standoff with police before being shot dead beneath an elevated expressway by a licensed hunter.“I never imagined a bear would show up here,” a local woman told the Asahi. “Where on earth did it come from?”Residents and local authorities are hoping this year could bring relief, with experts forecasting better crops of beechnuts – a staple of the animals’s diet.Last year’s harvest was poor, forcing bears to venture into populated areas to find food. Since poor crops appear to occur in two-year cycles – a phenomenon some scientists have attributed to the climate crisis and intense summer heat – a plentiful supply this year could mean fewer hungry bears roaming towns and villages.But Shinsuke Koike, a professor of ecology at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, struck a note of caution, given that the recent sightings came during the spring, when bears that have just emerged from hibernation usually eat leaves and wild plants in the mountains.“Bears that previously ventured into human settlements may have learned that food can be found in places close to people,” Koike told the Mainichi Shimbun. He added that previous encounters with people – after which the animals returned safely to their natural habitat – may mean they no longer see humans as a potential threat.