In brief
In 2025, Japan has recorded its highest number of bear attacks, resulting in seven deaths primarily in northern regions. Experts link the surge to food scarcity due to climate change, prompting bears to invade populated areas. Investigations continue into the alarming incidents, which have also left approximately 100 people injured.
The number of people killed by bears in Japan this year has reached a record high, the country's environment ministry has said. Seven people have died since April - the highest since 2006 when data was first recorded - with fatalities mostly in north-eastern regions and the northern prefecture of Hokkaido.A 60-year-old man cleaning an outdoor hot spring bath has gone missing in what is suspected to be the latest incident. Attacks by bears tend to surge in autumn before they hibernate, with experts suggesting that low yields of beech nuts due to climate change could be pushing hungry bears into residential areas. Depopulation of rural areas has also been cited as a factor.Environmental ministry figures indicate that this year has seen seven fatalities surpassing five recorded in the previous year, along with around 100 injuries compared to 85 injuries and three deaths a year earlier. Investigators found human blood and bear fur at the site of a recent suspected bear attack in Kitakami, Iwate prefecture. Reports confirm that a man found dead last week in Iwate was killed by a bear. Another incident involved a bear entering a supermarket in Numata, Gunma, lightly injuring two men. This year, a farmer in Iwate reported being scratched and bitten by a bear accompanied by a cub, and earlier, a tourist was attacked at a bus stop in Shirakawa-go. Two types of bear are found in Japan: Asian black bears and brown bears, mainly in Hokkaido.
