Why bear attacks are rising fast in Japan

Jeff Kingston credits his dogs with saving his life when he was attacked by a bear on a mountain track in central Japan, although the scars left by the creature's claws will always remain on his forehead, arms and shoulders.

Like many residents of rural parts of Japan , he believes the uptrend in recent years in encounters between humans and bears is going to continue, perhaps with deadly consequences.

"I guess I've encountered bears around 100 times in the mountains and been charged around 15 times," said Kingston, an American academic who likes to escape Tokyo on the weekend for his cabin in rural Gunma Prefecture. "And I think they are changing. They seem ornerier and hungrier than before."

The incident that left Kingston scarred took place in 2014, when he was confronted by a bear that knocked him into the underbrush, he said.

The bear continued its attack until Kingston's dogs intervened and eventually chased it off. With blood still streaming down his face, he managed to reach a nearby hospital and receive nine stitches.

The following year, he was better prepared and fought off another bear with repellent spray, but only after it got to within a meter of him.

"Since then, I have been a less eager hiker in the summer months, from the end of June until early in September," Kingston told DW.

The Japanese government's 2026 environment white paper, released last week, declares that bears have become "a serious threat to public safety and peace."