Attacks have risen in recent years, prompting the authorities to consider new measures to protect people

Russia's brown bear population has more than doubled over the past three decades, while a rise in attacks in recent years has prompted authorities and lawmakers to consider new ways to reduce the risks.

An independent online project has also begun mapping reports of bear encounters across the country.

What does the bear map show?

WhereBearbrings together reports of bear sightings, attacks and tracks from official sources, media reports, open publications, and users, plotting them on an interactive map of Russia.

The independent service also accepts user submissions. It does not track animals in real time: markers show where and when bears were reported, rather than their current location.

How serious is the problem?

Russia is home to 307,900 brown bears, according to the Natural Resources Ministry.

The largest populations are concentrated in Siberia and the Far East, led by Krasnoyarsk Region with 26,600, Khabarovsk Region with 26,200 and Kamchatka with 24,200. Irkutsk Region has an estimated 22,400 and Yakutia 18,800.

Are bear attacks becoming more common?

Authorities have recorded 59 attacks so far this year, leaving 21 people dead and 38 injured across 22 regions.

The figure compares with 34 attacks in 2025 and 19 in 2024. Officials say around 20 to 30 attacks have typically been recorded annually in recent years, although there have been exceptional spikes. In 2014, 166 attacks were registered.

In the Krasnoyarsk Region, six people died in confirmed or suspected bear attacks in September alone, prompting investigators to open a criminal negligence case.

Heightened-alert regimes have been introduced in several parts of Siberia and the Far East. In Zakamensk, Buryatia, two schools and a technical college switched to remote learning after a bear appeared inside the town.

Why are bears approaching people?

Experts point to several factors, including the growing population, shortages of natural food, and easy access to human food.

Russian hunting inspectors and biologists have pointed to an unusually poor crop of nuts and berries this year. Researchers said that an early, dry spring caused berries to ripen and fall earlier than usual, leaving bears with less natural food as they prepared for hibernation.

Open rubbish containers, dumps, and food waste around homes and tourist facilities provide an easy source of calories. Once animals successfully find food near people, they may return. Wildlife authorities warn that bears accustomed to human food can gradually lose their natural caution and become more dangerous.

How are Russian authorities responding?

The Russian government is preparing additional measures following this year's attacks.

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev said on Wednesday that regions struggling to control bear numbers could receive additional federal funding. The government is also considering regulatory changes that would allow regional authorities to act more quickly, including potentially removing brown bears from the list of species subject to hunting limits.

"As the bear population grows, so does the number of problems," Patrushev said at a government meeting on the issue.

Natural Resources Minister Aleksandr Kozlov has also proposed giving his ministry greater powers to verify regional estimates of bear numbers and setting baseline population levels for individual areas.

Separately, State Duma lawmaker Dmitry Novikov has proposed creating a public map showing areas where bears, wolves, and other predators regularly approach communities. His proposal includes camera traps and remote monitoring, as well as alerts for residents.

Why aren't more bears being hunted?

Existing hunting limits are far from being reached. In 2025, hunters killed 12,700 bears nationwide, or around 27% of the nearly 47,000 they were permitted to hunt, according to the Association of Hunters and Fishermen.

Hunting groups have attributed the low uptake partly to the cost of hunting and weak demand for bear meat and skins. The association has proposed scrapping the fee to boost interest.

Experts []

Why is the bear so closely associated with Russia?

Beyond the current concerns over their growing numbers, bears have featured in Russian culture for centuries, from folklore and literature to heraldry - long before they became an international stereotype associated with the country.

Getty Images / KateDemianov

In Russian folk tales, bears can be powerful and fearsome, but also good-natured, naïve, or easily outwitted. They are often called Misha, a familiar form of the name Mikhail.

Trained bears were once common at fairs and public festivities, where handlers had them perform tricks, dance, and imitate people. Bears also made their way into Russian literature, appearing in works by writers including Leo Tolstoy and Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin. One appears prominently in Tatyana's famous dream in Alexander Pushkin's Eugene Onegin, drawing on a folk belief that dreaming of the animal could foretell marriage.

Bears have also appeared in Russian heraldry for centuries, including on the coats of arms of Yaroslavl, Perm, and Veliky Novgorod. Some of these images can be traced to the 16th and 17th centuries. Yaroslavl's bear is linked to a legend about the city's founding, while Perm's carries a Gospel on its back.

Yaroslavl, Russia.

Sputnik / Ramil Sitdikov

Outside Russia, the animal gradually became a visual shorthand for the country, particularly in European political cartoons. British caricaturists were depicting Russia as a bear by the late 18th century, often using the image to convey size, strength, aggression, and menace. The stereotype persisted through the Russian Empire and the Soviet era and remains common today, with the 'Russian bear' often portrayed as a powerful and threatening beast.

From Olympic Misha to 'Masha and the Bear'

One of the most famous modern versions of the image came with the 1980 Moscow Olympics, when a smiling bear cub named Misha was chosen as the Games' mascot. Designed by Soviet children's-book illustrator Viktor Chizhikov, Misha appeared on everything from stamps and posters to toys and souvenirs.

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At the closing ceremony, thousands of participants in the stands formed a giant mosaic of Misha, with a tear appearing to roll down the bear's cheek. The emotional farewell moved many spectators as an enormous inflatable version of the mascot was lifted into the air by balloons and floated out of the stadium to the song 'Farewell, Moscow.'

Decades later, another Russian bear reached an even larger global audience. The traditional folk tale Masha and the Bear inspired the Russian animated series of the same name, which has become an international children's hit. One episode, Recipe for Disaster, became the most-viewed animated video on YouTube, according to Guinness World Records.

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Are other countries facing similar problems?

Russia is not the only country reporting an increase in encounters between bears and people.

Japan has faced similar problems, recording a record 238 bear-related casualties in fiscal 2025 and prompting the government to step up measures aimed at reducing encounters.

Human-bear conflicts are also reported in parts of North America and Europe. Wildlife authorities have similarly warned that bears attracted to rubbish and other human food can become accustomed to people and repeatedly return.

While circumstances vary by country and bear species, expanding or recovering populations, natural food availability, and access to human food can all affect how often bears and people cross paths.

(RT.com)