Il Nuovo Postiglione - Fatal bear attacks hit new record in Japan

More and more wild bears have been spotted in Japan in recent years, even in residential areas, due to factors including a declining human population and climate change.

"This is the largest toll since 2006 when statistics started," surpassing five victims recorded in the 2023-24 fiscal year, the ministry official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The statement followed confirmation that a man found dead last week in the northern region of Iwate was killed by a bear.

Including the fatal cases, at least 108 people have been injured since April when the fiscal year started.

This is up from 85 incidents of injury including three fatal cases the previous fiscal year, and compares with 219 in 2023/24, according to the environment ministry survey.

Last week a 1.4-metre (4.5-foot) adult bear entered a supermarket in Numata, Gunma, north of Tokyo.

The animal lightly injured a man in his 70s and another in his 60s, regional police and fire officials said.

The store is close to mountainous areas, but has never had bears come near before, Hiroshi Horikawa, a management planning official at the grocery store chain, told AFP.

"It entered from the main entrance and stayed inside for roughly four minutes," he said.

"It almost climbed onto the fish case and damaged glass. In the fruits section, it knocked over a pile of avocados and stamped on them," he added.

The store's manager told local media that around 30 to 40 customers were inside at the time, and that the bear became agitated as it struggled to find the exit.

The same day a farmer in Iwate region was scratched and bitten by a bear, accompanied by a cub, just outside his house.

And earlier this month a Spanish tourist was attacked by a bear at a bus stop in the scenic village of Shirakawa-go in central Japan.

Climate change is a factor in the increased number of incidents because of its effects on foods that the animals eat, such as acorns, as well as hibernation times.

Japan has two types of bears: Asian black bears -- also known as moon bears -- and the bigger brown bears which live on the main northern island of Hokkaido.

Thousands of the animals are shot every year.

Q.Bernardi--INP