Bears are perhaps the largest predators in Russia. In the Urals there are specimens whose weight exceeds half a ton. It is terrible to think that hunting a bear with bare hands was one of the funs of our ancestors.
Bears are non-aggressive creatures (with some exceptions). Despite the fact that headlines like “The next bear attack on humans” appear more and more often in the press today, there is little animal guilt. A healthy, well-fed beast, on the territory of which people do not invade, rarely attacks.
Why are they attacking?
Each bear attack on a person has good reason.
- Violation of the territory "owned" by the bear. Brown giants do not like when outsiders appear in their habitats. Smelling a man, they will try to drive him away as they can: with fangs and claws. Such a bear attack on humans occurred in the Khanty-Mansiysk District. Here, the owner of the taiga lifted up a local resident who went for berries. If logging begins in the bear habitats, villages are being built or economic activity is underway, you need to be prepared for the bear’s attack on humans to take place: the clubfoot will try to regain its possessions.
- Threat to the young. The mother bear always protects her offspring. That's why you should not flirt with cubs: animals do not understand human games.
- Hunger. Journalists talk about how animals attack people right in the villages. Most often, if cases occur in the winter, we are talking about connecting rods. This is the name of the bears, who, having not gained the right amount of fat for the winter, do not sleep in the den, but seek food. They are attracted by the delicious smells of the villages. Such a bear attack on humans was recorded in Severodvinsk, at one of the shipyards. Neither the smells of industrialization nor the enormous distance (hundreds of kilometers from Severodvinsk to the taiga) scared the starving predator. The bear’s attack on humans (photo - in the article) was repeatedly repeated in the Sakhalin region, in the Urals, in Bashkiria. Even in the Carpathian region there were such cases.
- The attack of a polar bear on a person has the same reasons: protection of the territory, hunger.
What to do?
- It is clear that, for all their apparent “likeness,” bears are predators and behave accordingly. This is not aggression, it is their nature. This must not be forgotten.
- Keep clean. In villages, clubfoot most often appears in search of food. Therefore, it is worth disposing of food waste in a timely manner: this can reduce the risk of a taiga owner appearing near residential buildings. Of course, if they do not smell the smell of the food they are preparing.
- Going into the forest, try to behave so that the meeting with Potapych is not a surprise. Look around, sing, say: give signals about your presence.
- If the meeting took place, do not run, behave predictably: speak (quietly) or pretend to be dead. Bears are curious: they can come up, smell, touch with their paw. Not seeing the threat, the bear, maybe, will leave.
- Remember: if the bear decided to eat you, he will do it, regardless of your desire and behavior.