Photo/Illutration An Asian black bear photographed in Iwate Prefecture in July (Provided by Sota Watanabe, a student at Iwate University's Faculty of Agriculture)

From time to time in late autumn, people spot circular heaps of woven branches left on tree trunks. They are handcrafted by wild bears.

As they climb up trees and break off branches to eat acorns, bears put the branches under them after they finish with them, building the heaps in the process, which are known in Japan as “kumadana” (bear shelves).

“This year, we are likely to see more bear shelves than usual because of very bad acorn crops in most of the prefectures inhabited by Asian black bears,” predicts Toru Oi, 62, a professor at Ishikawa Prefectural University. “Fallen nuts alone cannot feed them adequately.”

Bears have a big appetite in the fall season. They want to obtain as much nutrition as possible around this time of the year.

In Ishikawa Prefecture, there have been plenty of bear sightings in urban areas in the past several weeks. On Oct. 16 and 17, a total of seven people, mostly elderly, were injured in bear attacks in the prefecture along the Sea of Japan coast.

The attacks came a week or so after the prefectural government upgraded the bear alert it had issued in September to a warning. It was the first time in 10 years that a bear warning was issued in the prefecture.

Elementary school children carry bear bells on their way to and from school, as police officers watch out for their safety from a distance.

Bears are timid animals, according to Oi. They stray into villages only when they are lured by persimmons left on branches or discarded food waste.

For many bears, an encounter with a human may occur only once in their lifetime.

“Bears attack people or take refuge in a store only when they have fallen into a panic,” Oi says.

Asahi Shimbun local editions have reported bear attacks in which residents in Akita and Niigata prefectures were killed.

Who could anticipate encountering a fierce animal in a residential area or in a field near their home?

It is painful to image the horror the victims must have felt and the sorrow of their families.

A close encounter between a human and a bear is extremely unfortunate for both.

The hibernation season for bears is just around the corner. Let us pray that no more tragedies will happen on a sudden encounter between a human and a bear.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 18

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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