Last year a huge ‘Ninja Bear’ was finally caught after it had been attacking cattle for years – but livestock deaths have started up again and the once-shy bears are now turning their grisly attention to humans. On the mountainous Japanese island of Hokkaido a massive bear, who stood at 7ft 3in and locals called Oso18, was raiding farms and ripping out the innards of cattle. The attacks went on for years with no one able to catch the blood thirsty beast, leading to it being called a “ninja” bear. There was huge relief when in 2023 a hunter killed the terrifying animal and locals thought their nightmare was over. However, the gruesome attacks have started up again and this time it’s not only animals that are being killed, but humans too. In May of this year, near to where Oso18 was carrying out its lethal ambushes, a black bear attacked eight cattle in a shed, ripping out the insides of four of them. The other four had to be destroyed because of their brutal injuries. A few days later in Gunma prefecture on the neighbouring island of Honshu, an elderly couple were sleeping in their home when a black bear broke in during the night and left them with serious face and head injuries. On the same island, in Akita prefecture in the middle of May, a 64-year old man was killed while foraging for bamboo shoots. Police were mauled by the bear and forced to flee as they tried to recover the body. According to The Times, a local government officer in Akita told the All-Nippon News Network the bears are fearless. “I’ve seen about 40 bears myself,” he said. “Bears are everywhere. Even if you set off firecrackers right next to them, they won’t run away. They just prowl around.” In the year leading up to March, 219 people had been attacked in Japan in 198 separate incidents, which makes it the highest recorded number since records began in 2006. Six people were savagely killed by bears, including a university student who was eaten on Hokkaido in November. The animals usually eat a predominantly vegetarian and insect diet but have reportedly developed a taste for meat from the rising number of deer in Japan. They used to be hunted more but there are fewer hunters now. Those that still do tend to leave the carcasses in the mountains, where the bears can have an easy meal. Yasushi Fujimoto, head of a hunting organisation, told the paper it is adding to the horrific issue. “The lack of professional hunters, like park rangers in Alaska financed by the government, is a problem when it comes to controlling the number of bears,” he said. “The mountain is turning into a restaurant for bears, because of the remains left on the mountain after hunting.” In April after dashcam footage of a huge bear attacking a truck went viral Jeffrey J Hall, a special lecturer in Japanese Studies at Kanda University of International Studies, who has researched social issues in the country told The Mirror that bears are reclaiming depopulated areas. He said: “This problem is related to Japan’s demographic crisis. With Japan’s rural communities aging and declining in population, wild animals are reclaiming depopulated land.” He explained that the change in hunting practices has had a massive impact on bear numbers: “Normally hunters would keep bear populations in check, but younger generations of Japanese have moved to cities and a lot of hunters are now elderly. Japan’s very strict firearms laws present a major hurdle to any young person who might take an interest in hunting..” It is also thought that heavy rainfall last summer followed by a drought affected the fruit harvest and insect population, which the bears feed on before hibernating. Hunger could be driving them to find food elsewhere, including in areas near to people’s homes, where attacks have increased. Hall added: “For decades Japanese hikers going into the mountains have been warned to carry bells or bear spray to ward off bears, but now we’re facing a situation where bears and other wild animals are more frequently wandering down into towns.” What do you think of this story? Let us know in the comments below.
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