Jeff Kingston credits his dogs with saving his life when he was attacked by a bear on a mountain track in central Japan, although the scars left by the creature's claws will always remain on his forehead, arms and shoulders.
Like many residents of rural parts of Japan, he believes the uptrend in recent years in encounters between humans and bears is going to continue, perhaps with deadly consequences.
"I guess I've encountered bears around 100 times in the mountains and been charged around 15 times," said Kingston, an American academic who likes to escape Tokyo on the weekend for his cabin in rural Gunma Prefecture. "And I think they are changing. They seem ornerier and hungrier than before."
The incident that left Kingston scarred took place in 2014, when he was confronted by a bear that knocked him into the underbrush, he said.A zoo worker prepares a tranquilizer as they search for a black bear in Tochigi Prefecture on June 9Image: Kim Kyung-Hoon/REUTERS
The bear continued its attack until Kingston's dogs intervened and eventually chased it off. With blood still streaming down his face, he managed to reach a nearby hospital and receive nine stitches.
