Bear Deaths USA versus Japan
Discussion
Who knew? Japan with a bear population of 57k has around 10 fatal bear attacks per year while the USA with a bear population of 400k has two or three fatal bear attacks.
https://www.thetimes.com/world/asia/article/japan-...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_bear_a...
I guess Japan being more densely populated has more bear v human contacts? Or maybe in the USA problem bears are shot sooner?
Maybe the fact bear hunting is legal in the USA keeps bears wary of human contact?
https://www.petersenshunting.com/editorial/black-b...
https://www.thetimes.com/world/asia/article/japan-...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_bear_a...
I guess Japan being more densely populated has more bear v human contacts? Or maybe in the USA problem bears are shot sooner?
Maybe the fact bear hunting is legal in the USA keeps bears wary of human contact?
https://www.petersenshunting.com/editorial/black-b...
In Japan people hike/walk/whatever in areas where there are known to be bear populations. So much so they carry sticks with bells on them when going for a wander to warn bears of their presence hoping they scarper.
They don't always scarper and tourists think baby bears are cute not realising mummy bear is watching.
Also, in "bear country" in the US people carry guns which are more effective than sticks with bells.
They don't always scarper and tourists think baby bears are cute not realising mummy bear is watching.
Also, in "bear country" in the US people carry guns which are more effective than sticks with bells.
21TonyK said:
In Japan people hike/walk/whatever in areas where there are known to be bear populations. So much so they carry sticks with bells on them when going for a wander to warn bears of their presence hoping they scarper.
They don't always scarper and tourists think baby bears are cute not realising mummy bear is watching.
Also, in "bear country" in the US people carry guns which are more effective than sticks with bells.
I feel like there should be a Morris Dancer gag in there somewhereThey don't always scarper and tourists think baby bears are cute not realising mummy bear is watching.
Also, in "bear country" in the US people carry guns which are more effective than sticks with bells.
T out of a bear would just make it very angry... Judo might be better.I have just come back from a few weeks in northern Japan. Most shops sell bear bells, although I suspect you are not helping yourself with one LOL. Warning signs everywhere and I saw "bear sightings" on the local news.
The bears there are very aggressive and the brown bears in particular will go after humans for a laugh. There are 100s of bear attacks a year.
I think what does not help is the Japanese are very outdoorsy types. They are always out in the fields and hiking the trails. I went to some pretty remote areas and there were always locals out with their back packs on walking the trails.
I have been to Japan a few times and always mindful of the wildlife - hornets, bears and snakes. I have seen plenty of giant hornets, lots of snakes and 1 bear - dead on the side of the road. They have some pretty big monkeys too, unfortunately saw one hit by a truck a few years ago.
The locals don't like to interfere too much with nature either so they just let these animals do whatever - where as there would be more controls in the US or Europe.
That said they do hunt problem bears in Japan. Its just not really done to a great degree for sport like in the US.
The bears there are very aggressive and the brown bears in particular will go after humans for a laugh. There are 100s of bear attacks a year.
I think what does not help is the Japanese are very outdoorsy types. They are always out in the fields and hiking the trails. I went to some pretty remote areas and there were always locals out with their back packs on walking the trails.
I have been to Japan a few times and always mindful of the wildlife - hornets, bears and snakes. I have seen plenty of giant hornets, lots of snakes and 1 bear - dead on the side of the road. They have some pretty big monkeys too, unfortunately saw one hit by a truck a few years ago.
The locals don't like to interfere too much with nature either so they just let these animals do whatever - where as there would be more controls in the US or Europe.
That said they do hunt problem bears in Japan. Its just not really done to a great degree for sport like in the US.
irc said:
Who knew? Japan with a bear population of 57k has around 10 fatal bear attacks per year while the USA with a bear population of 400k has two or three fatal bear attacks.
Also, the US is 26 times the size of Japan. (And you mention population but Japan has 1/3 of the population of the US!)My sister lived in Vancouver and the Yukon for a couple of decades. She tells a story of a bear attack in a Canadian National Park campsite. It was ended by an American tourist who had a firearm in his RV.
Of course Americans are not allowed to carry firearms in Canada so the authorities were going to prosecute him until the public outcry.
As for bear bells - she hiked a lot in the Yukon and carried bells, not a gun. Apparently most bears will get out your way if they hear you coming.
I have camped around 30 weeks in the USA over the years. Apparently the risks are very low if you follow the rules, store food away from your tent, and never cook in your tent etc. I still didn't feel comfortable camping alone in the woods where there were grizzlies. It's just that not being top of the food chain feeling.
A guy on a bike touring forum had a worrying few hours near the USA/Canada border.
" At 1:30 AM I was awoken suddenly. I looked at my clock and wondered why I was wide awake. Squirrel was on alert. We soon heard a loud snort, an animal completely clearing it's lungs of air. I could tell it was at the top of the pit behind the tent, but I did not know what it was. I have heard deer make this sound before, just not this loud. Another loud snort and i could hear rocks falling down the pit and then the animal making its way down. I was still thinking this might be a moose until it was 10 feet from the tent, snorted, and gave two quick "woofs". Now I was scared! I gave my bear spray away to Stan and Sally thinking I would be OK the rest of the trip. The bear then charged the tent , came within a few feet and stopped. It continued to circle the tent and expel the air from its lungs. Eventually it wandered off, but I could still hear it snorting. Then it would run back and "woof". This went on for a good hour before it left. Needless to say Squirrel and I did not sleep the rest of the night."
" I packed up at first light and got "the heck out of dodge". I took a look around before I left and saw massive bear prints coming down the gravel pit, and a path of pushed over trees. The bear must have been a large grizzly and in a rage about my presence."
https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?page_id=...
Of course Americans are not allowed to carry firearms in Canada so the authorities were going to prosecute him until the public outcry.
As for bear bells - she hiked a lot in the Yukon and carried bells, not a gun. Apparently most bears will get out your way if they hear you coming.
I have camped around 30 weeks in the USA over the years. Apparently the risks are very low if you follow the rules, store food away from your tent, and never cook in your tent etc. I still didn't feel comfortable camping alone in the woods where there were grizzlies. It's just that not being top of the food chain feeling.
A guy on a bike touring forum had a worrying few hours near the USA/Canada border.
" At 1:30 AM I was awoken suddenly. I looked at my clock and wondered why I was wide awake. Squirrel was on alert. We soon heard a loud snort, an animal completely clearing it's lungs of air. I could tell it was at the top of the pit behind the tent, but I did not know what it was. I have heard deer make this sound before, just not this loud. Another loud snort and i could hear rocks falling down the pit and then the animal making its way down. I was still thinking this might be a moose until it was 10 feet from the tent, snorted, and gave two quick "woofs". Now I was scared! I gave my bear spray away to Stan and Sally thinking I would be OK the rest of the trip. The bear then charged the tent , came within a few feet and stopped. It continued to circle the tent and expel the air from its lungs. Eventually it wandered off, but I could still hear it snorting. Then it would run back and "woof". This went on for a good hour before it left. Needless to say Squirrel and I did not sleep the rest of the night."
" I packed up at first light and got "the heck out of dodge". I took a look around before I left and saw massive bear prints coming down the gravel pit, and a path of pushed over trees. The bear must have been a large grizzly and in a rage about my presence."
https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?page_id=...
Bear mace is the preferred anti bear tool in the USA, but most bears tend to shy away from humans, if they hear them.
It's stumbling across each other unexpectedly is usually the trigger for an incident.
But thats black bears.
Grizzlies don't give a monkeys. They'll do what they like.
M.
It's stumbling across each other unexpectedly is usually the trigger for an incident.
But thats black bears.
Grizzlies don't give a monkeys. They'll do what they like.
M.
I know we all love to knock the UK, but we’re fortunate to not have any wildlife trying to kill us (ticks excepted). Add that to the fairly benign weather and it does have some upsides compared to elsewhere.
I spent quite a bit of time during Covid in Alaska and went hiking quite a bit. Naively we were going out with absolutely nothing in the way of bear protection until some colleagues had an (uneventful) encounter with one. Turns out everyone on the trails has bells and bear spray!
I spent quite a bit of time during Covid in Alaska and went hiking quite a bit. Naively we were going out with absolutely nothing in the way of bear protection until some colleagues had an (uneventful) encounter with one. Turns out everyone on the trails has bells and bear spray!
Haha there was an article on R4 the other day, the bear population has more than doubled since 2010 due to conservation efforts. Yay. But bear attacks are massively up due to climate change.
It seems until fairly recently bears were not oft encountered in Japan, since conservation measures were introduced in 2005 (iirc) they have started to encroach on more populated areas. I think in the US and Canada bears have come into contact with people for ever so people are more wary/ prepared. I was in jasper last year and literally every shop sold bear mace.
It seems until fairly recently bears were not oft encountered in Japan, since conservation measures were introduced in 2005 (iirc) they have started to encroach on more populated areas. I think in the US and Canada bears have come into contact with people for ever so people are more wary/ prepared. I was in jasper last year and literally every shop sold bear mace.
J6542 said:
Think I'd prefer a shotgun loaded with 00 rather than a telephoto lense to defend myself.
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