Sometimes, when dealing with wildlife, you don’t need to get really high-tech and do a big rescue; rather it’s removing a few bushes from around the area.
And that’s what officials in Tokyo are doing to tackle the growing number of black bear sightings in their communities. To help avoid additional close encounters between humans and bears, local authorities have decided to eliminate dense vegetation along sections of a river that bears may be using to naturally travel into the city.
That sounds like a pretty minor change but wildlife experts believe there could be a major impact on reducing how many bears eventually end up in urban areas.
The concept is surprisingly simple.
The bear’s natural instinct is to avoid crossing large open areas where it can be easily seen. There is ample opportunity for bears to use thick grass, bushes, and riverside vegetation as cover, which allow them to travel unnoticed. By removing some of these natural hiding places, officials will make urban settings less hospitable for bears and help prevent bears from coming into neighborhoods.
This isn’t the first option Japan has attempted to manage this issue.
In the past few years, the country has used some very innovative methods to try and reduce the increasing amount of bear activity throughout the area. Some of the different projects included the use of robotic wolves that would utilize bright flashing lights and loud noises to scare off wildlife. Other forms of high-tech innovation included using artificial intelligence to analyze animal movement activity, as well as deploying drones to monitor areas prior to those animals migrating towards populated areas.
However, the most recent strategy is very different from the technology aspect of bear control.
The beginning of this current method of controlling bear populations started in Hachioji, a city located on the west side of Tokyo, following a series of bear sightings that raised community concerns.
Since April, the local government has received an increasing number of reports related to either witnessing a bear or discovering evidence of bear activity in the same vicinity. While most reports are concerning, the fact that this trend has continued to rise has only increased the level of concerns expressed within the local community.
The most notable example of the increasing amount of bear activity occurred in late April when a wildlife camera was able to capture video footage of a Japanese black bear wandering close to an area that was considered populated by people on the edge of a residential neighborhood surrounded by mountains. This video recording gives a much clearer indication of how closely bears may be venturing towards residential neighborhoods than previously thought.
Officials quickly began investigating potential cause(s).
They were able to determine that the thick thickets of vegetation growing adjacent to the Asakawa River likely provided a safe travel corridor for bears to use. Bears could follow the river bank hidden from view as they traveled from place to place, avoiding crossing any open fields or exposed roadways.
So, action was taken.
Authorities that manage the river cleared a swath of approximately 30 meters running parallel to both sides of the river where it is located near Hachioji City Hall. This was the very first occasion when vegetation had been specifically cleared in the area with the intent to discourage bear activity.
The intent was not to eliminate the animal population from the area.
Instead, the authorities were trying to limit the number of locations that would conceal bears when they traveled near residential neighbourhoods. By reducing the number of safe hiding places, it would be hoped that the bears would stay close to their natural environment instead of being encouraged to enter urban settings.
This issue is not just limited to the Hachioji area.
Across Japan, black bear sightings have become much more frequent in recent years. A series of incidents have occurred in which bears have entered urban areas, causing property damage and occasionally coming into contact with residents. As these encounters continue to increase, local governments are re-evaluating their methods of addressing the growing interface between wildlife and the expansion of human communities.
After another recent black bear incident that resulted in the capture of a 100-kg black bear with tranquilizer darts, there has been an increasing focus on finding ways to help prevent these events from happening, rather than relying upon concurrently addressing them after they have occurred.
Urban expansion is causing more and more interactions between humans and bears; as urban development continues, more people and bears will likely have contact with one another.
This is one of the reasons prevention strategies are being pursued as the primary means to address human/bear interactions.
Instead of waiting for a bear to appear in an urban area, Japanese officials are focusing on the creation of ways to physically eliminate opportunities for bears to travel into the areas where humans reside. Use of technology as well as specific efforts to remove vegetation along riverbanks have been two techniques employed by Japanese officials to improve safety for both humans and bears.
The current example from Tokyo shows us that the protection of communities can often be achieved without the most technologically advanced ideas. An understanding of how wildlife utilizes the landscape, and by limiting a few access points by removing natural features, communities can successfully separate themselves.
