Japan sees record 47,000 Asian black bear sightings in April-November

The eight-month figure nearly doubled from the previous annual record high of 24,348 marked in fiscal 2023.

The number of captured bears, including brown bears, since April 2025 had reached a record high of 12,659 as of the end of November last year, topping 10,000 for the first time, the ministry said.

By prefecture, Akita recorded the highest number of Asian black bear sightings, at 13,172, followed by Iwate, at 9,270, Niigata, at 3,265 and Miyagi, at 3,056.

Akita also had the largest number of bears captured for damage prevention and population control, at 2,564. The Tohoku northeastern region, including Akita, accounted for some 65 pct of all bear captures.

The ministry said it believes that the number of bear removals rose following an increase in sightings in urban areas.

There were 54 cases of emergency culling, in which municipalities authorize hunters to fire their rifles in urban areas to kill animals that pose a risk to people, between the start of the scheme in September 2025 and the end of the year.