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The U.S. State Department is informing Americans successful Japan to beryllium alert arsenic carnivore attacks and sightings emergence successful parts of the country.
Americans should debar areas wherever bears are sighted, particularly if walking alone, and beryllium alert of their surroundings, the State Department said successful a "wildlife alert" Wednesday. Anyone who spots a carnivore should study it to section authorities.
Bears person killed astatine slightest 13 radical successful Japan since April, much than treble the 5 radical killed successful the 2023-2024 fiscal year, AFP reported. It's the largest number of radical killed by bears successful Japan since the state began keeping specified records successful 2006. More than 100 different radical person sustained injuries since April, according to Environment Ministry statistic from the extremity of October.
Most of the attacks person occurred successful bluish Japan. In its alert, the State Department called retired the Hokkaido and Akita Prefectures, arsenic good arsenic Sapporo City, wherever officials closed a parkland adjacent to the U.S. Consulate General aft a carnivore was sighted there.
Troops were precocious deployed to Akita to incorporate the animals there. Some constabulary person been authorized to sprout the animals, AFP reported.
A "Bear successful Area" informing motion displayed adjacent a wood successful Akita Prefecture, taken from AFPTV video footage filmed connected Oct. 25, 2025.
Caroline Gardin/AFPTV/AFP/Getty Images
U.S. citizens should registry for the Smart-Traveler Enrollment Program, which makes it easier to person information messages from the State Department and allows Americans to beryllium located much easy successful lawsuit of an emergency, the State Department said.
The State Department regularly issues warnings, and each state successful the satellite has been fixed a designated question advisory. Japan's travel advisory level remains astatine 1, meaning travelers should "exercise mean precautions." But it's uncommon for U.S. officials to pass astir wildlife successful a overseas country. The State Department did not instantly respond to a query asking however galore specified warnings person been issued.
Bears person been spotted adjacent schools, successful supermarkets and adjacent adjacent Iwate Hanamaki Airport. Experts accidental the country's aging and declining agrarian population has contributed to the problem. As Japan's colonisation shrinks, humans permission agrarian areas and bears determination in.
"Then that country recovered to the forest, truthful bears person a accidental to grow their range," biologist Koji Yamazaki, from Tokyo University of Agriculture, told CBS News' Elizabeth Palmer successful 2023.
Older section hunters are besides not utilized to carnivore hunting, and fewer preventative measures person been taken successful caller years. Climate alteration has also affected the bears' hibernation schedules and impacted foods the animals beryllium on.
Japan has 2 types of bear: Asian achromatic bears recovered passim the country's mainland — besides known arsenic satellite bears — and the bigger brownish bears that unrecorded connected the main bluish land of Hokkaido. Brown bears tin measurement implicit 1,100 pounds and outrun humans. Asian achromatic bears are climbers and are smaller, weighing astir 440 pounds astatine most, according to the International Association for Bear Research and Management. Thousands of the bears are culled successful Japan each year.
Infographic showing the earthy scope of Japan's bears, fig of radical injured and killed successful encounters implicit the past decade, and the fig bears culled, by prefecture, 2014 - Nov. 2025.
John Saeki/AFP/Getty Images
AFP contributed to this report.
Japan takes steps to woody with deadly carnivore occupation
Japan takes antithetic steps to woody with its deadly carnivore problem
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