Bears are increasingly killing Russians – statistics and causes

A sharp increase in brown bear attacks on humans has been recorded in Russia, with at least 20 people killed since the beginning of the year, and a peak in fatalities in September. Experts attribute this to climate change, food shortages, and government negligence. A criminal case has been opened against officials in the Krasnoyarsk region.

Russian regions are facing a sharp increase in brown bear attacks on humans. Since the beginning of the year, at least 20 people have been killed by predators, with a critical concentration of fatalities in September. In the first autumn month alone, seven deadly incidents were recorded in the Krasnoyarsk region. One high-profile case was an attack in the village of Voznesenka, where a bear mauled a 51-year-old woman to death on her property. Similar tragedies occurred in the Irkutsk region and Tuva, where victims included mushroom pickers, loggers, and hockey coach Alexander Kuzmenko. The incidents spanned at least 11 regions. Experts highlight two main causes: climate change leading to food shortages, and human negligence. The brown bear population in Russia has more than doubled since the 1990s, exceeding 300,000 individuals. A criminal case for negligence has been opened against officials of the Ministry of Natural Resources in the Krasnoyarsk region. The Russian Ministry of Natural Resources is trying to downplay the scale of the problem, claiming that the statistics remain at the usual level of 20–30 cases, and that the crisis is an illusion created by social media.