Episode 46: Japan's Bear Invasion

Update: 2025-11-12

Description

They used to say bear attacks were rare. That if you stayed on the trails, respected the woods, you’d be safe. But not anymore. Across Japan, bears are currently showing up in towns—supermarkets, homes, schools, even train stations. 13 people dead, and counting. Over a hundred injured. The government is calling in the military. Join us as we dig into Japan’s current escalating bear crisis—what’s really happening in the forests, and how climate, human behavior, and chaos intertwine. You’ll also hear the harrowing survival story of Kiwi, who came face to face with a bear during Japan's bear invasion—and lived to tell what it’s really like when nature decides you’re the prey.

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Sources:

1. https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20251027_16/#:~:text=Japan's%20Environment%20Ministry%20says%2010,Iwate's%2010%20and%20Fukushima's%20eight.

2. https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2025/10/08/japan-bear-attack-supermarket/5671759928293/

3. https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/08/asia/japan-bear-supermarket-attac-intl-hnk

4. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bears-kill-record-number-people-japan-2025/#:~:text=Experts%20say%20warmer%20weather%20is,where%20he%20was%20found%20dead.

5. http://www.nikkoyumoto-vc.com/english/nature/kuma.html#:~:text=After%20having%20accumulated%20fat%20from%20eating%20acorns,it%20is%20also%20called%20fuyugomori%20(winter%20confinement.)

6. https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Ursus_thibetanus/

7. https://www.bearbiology.org/the-eight-bear-species/ursus-thibetanus-asiatic-black-bear/#:~:text=They%20(%20Asiatic%20black%20bears%20)%20are,Russian%20Far%20East%2C%20and%20possibly%20North%20Korea.

8. https://animalia.bio/ussuri-brown-bear#:~:text=In%20Hokkaido%2C%20the%20brown%20bears'%20diet%20includes,are%20largely%20caused%20by%20feeding%20on%20crops.