A bear described by local officials as ‘extremely intelligent’ is eluding capture in northern Japan after attacking four people, prompting the deployment of British animal behaviour experts to assist in the search. The animal, believed to be a brown bear, has been roaming the outskirts of Sapporo since Wednesday, when it entered a residential area and injured four residents, including an elderly woman. Witnesses reported the bear displayed unusual cunning: it avoided traps set by authorities, doubled back on its tracks, and even appeared to deliberately knock over bait stations.
‘This is not a normal bear,’ said Hokkaido prefecture official Yuki Tanaka. ‘It seems to understand how we operate.’ The British team, from the UK’s Animal and Plant Health Agency, arrived in Tokyo on Friday and is travelling to Hokkaido to assist.
They specialise in ‘problematic large carnivores’ and have previously dealt with escaped animals. ‘We are dealing with a highly adaptive individual,’ said Dr. Alice Thornton, the team’s lead.
‘It’s learned to associate humans with danger but also with food sources. That combination makes it unpredictable.’ Local schools have been closed, and residents have been told to stay indoors.
The bear is estimated to weigh up to 200kg. Search teams have been using drones and thermal cameras but have so far failed to locate it. The incident has sparked debate about human-wildlife conflict in Japan, where bear sightings have increased as their natural habitat shrinks.
But experts caution that this bear’s behaviour is exceptional. ‘It’s almost as if it’s playing a game,’ said Thornton. ‘We need to act fast before someone gets killed.
