Bear
Bears are carnivores and are one of the largest animals known. There are two types of bears in Japan, brown bears and Asian black bears.
Bears are large carnivorous animals, belonging to the family Ursidae. There are two types of bears in Japan, brown bears and Asian black bears.
Brown bears are found only in Hokkaido. Male brown bears range in length from 2.5 to 3 meters and are the largest species in the country. The brown bear is an omnivore, eating various plants, insects, fish (such as salmon and trout), and mammals (such as deer) depending on the season. They hibernate during the winter, from December until March.
Black bears inhabit Honshu and Shikoku. They are thought to be extinct in Kyushu. Smaller than a brown bear, black bears grow from 120 to 150 cm in length. Black bears are omnivorous and hibernate during winter, from November to April.
There are various beliefs associated with bears. One Ainu ritual, iyomante (‘sending off’) involves cubs being raised until they are grown up, and then sacrificed to the world of the gods. In Akita Prefecture, a bear ceremony called kebokai was held by Matagi who hunted for a living.
The gastro-intestinal drug, yutan (bear's bile), is made by drying and hardening the gall bladder of a bear. Popular among many people, it is generally called kumanoi.
Mount Ashigara (Kanagawa Prefecture) is the scene of the legend which tells of Kintaro wrestling with a bear.
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Ainu brown bear sacrificial ceremony
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明治10年(1877)に創立された日本で最も歴史のある博物館の一つであり、自然史・科学技術史に関する国立の唯一の総合科学博物館。
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東京都港区に所在。生物多様性の保全及び人類による自然環境への負荷の軽減のための活動、 調査研究。日本に生息する2種のクマ、ツキノワグマとヒグマについてのコラムなども掲載されている。
北海道に所在。日本における人間とクマ類との共存をはかるために作られたNGO。