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The Asian Black Bear is widespread across Asia. Japan is the country with most of its population concentrates. I like black bears. The thrilling moment when you encounter the black creature is irresistible.
The Asian black bear is widespread across Asia. Japan is the country with most of its population concentrates. A Japanese nursery rhyme tells of Kintaro (the infant name of a legendary samurai) riding a bear like a horse. When people talk about bears as in this song, the bears are strong and loveable animals. I remember stories of kind, friendly bears which I heard in my childhood. In the last half century the Japanese people's image of the Asian black bears has changed dramatically. News reports and people's opinions are overwhelmingly negative now. "A bear sighting was reported in a city again" "A walking woman was attacked and injured by a bear " "A man was attacked and injured by a bear during hunting" In recent years, the number of Asian black bears killed has increased dramatically, from 3,000 to just under 7,000 every year. Many black bears have their family members killed by humans. A few days later when a survived bear returns he can smell the blood of his family together with the smell of humans. Asian black bears are not aggressive, in fact they are calm and reserved. No need to be overly afraid but do not forget that a bear is the strongest wild animal in Japanese mainland.
I like black bears. The thrilling moment when you encounter these black creature is irresistible. When I was photographing a black bears I only shot from the roadway. They are sensitive and have an outstanding sense of hearing and smell. I don't want to step into the habitat of Asian black bears and cause them any unnecessary stress.
A bears eating thidtle stems
(scientific name : Cirsium tonense)
In heavy rain and strong winds I was driving my four-wheel vehicle down a narrow mountain road. Ahead a small grassy plain appeared in the middle of the forest. Suddenly a black shadow jumped into the trees, it was a bear. Looking ahead I saw another bear standing up and then disappearing into the forest. I changed my gear into low and slowly drove down the path to the centre of the grassland. I parked the car a little less than 100 meters away from the edge of the forest. In front of me were two pairs of parents and cubs. Two one year old cubs and two last-year borns, total in six including their parents. In addition, there were three lone bears too. The wind and rain was still howling, and as I was downwind, the bears didn't notice me.
I slowly opened the door and crawled to the back of the car to get my camera bag which also had some bear-rejecting spray. There were nine Asian black bears in a 100 meter from me in every direction. Eleven in total, if I include the bears that had gone into the forest. I was impressed that such a black bear kingdom still existed in Japan.
