OSO18, Now in Its Fifth Year, has a Shocking New Theory, a Town Hall Official Reveals

OSO18 is a brown bear that has been terrorizing local residents by attacking many dairy cows in Hokkaido. This year marks the fifth year since the bear’s attacks were first confirmed in Reiwa 2028. Although capture operations have been underway, no clear sighting of the brown bear has yet been made.

Brown bears are said to awaken from hibernation at the end of February, and there are concerns that the damage will increase again this year. According to the town office of Atsugishi in southeastern Hokkaido, where the damage continues, the town office expects to spend more than 5 million yen this fiscal year to install electric fences and other measures on the town-run ranch alone, excluding farm households.

“According to the town office in Hokkaido’s southeastern region, the town is expecting to spend more than 5 million yen this fiscal year to install electric fences and other measures on the town-run ranch alone, excluding farmers. Since bears are supposed to wake up from hibernation and search for food first, we also conducted a search in February to see if there were any tracks left behind after the snow fell. However, no traces were found. This year we would like to extend the electric fence and set traps in places where they might pass by, after getting opinions from experts. If we can figure out where OSO18 went by footprints or other means, we can track it down and catch it, but we still have no promising leads.”

In this situation, new possibilities are being looked into locally. Until now, OSO18 has been regarded as a huge bear unmatched by other brown bears, as indicated by the “18 cm footprint width,” which gave it its name. However, this theory is being overturned. An official at the Atsugishi Town Office continues.

“The bear is described as a ‘monster’ weighing 400 kg or a ‘killer bear,’ but in reality it is not so different in size from an ordinary brown bear. Experts have been examining the scene since last year’s damage, and they are of the opinion that the width of OSO18’s front paws is about 16 cm. They say that it is common for the hind feet to overlap on top of the paw prints as they walk, making the footprints appear larger. This is probably why the initial measurement of 18 cm was taken as the size of the footprint. We are now taking measures based on the assumption that these are brown bears of a common size.”

At a briefing for dairy farmers held in the town at the end of January this year, the bear was estimated to be about 2 meters long, measured from the tip of its nose to the base of its tail, and to weigh 220 to 320 kilograms. However, even if the bear was of normal size, we cannot rest assured; the fact remains that OSO18 has attacked at least 65 cows. In fact, the fact remains that OSO18 has attacked at least 65 cows, meaning that tracks and other features will be less obvious and more difficult to track.

“As far as I can remember, OSO 18 is the first time a brown bear has attacked livestock in town. Even if it were common in size, it would still be a unique individual. We have no choice but to focus our efforts on capturing them so that everyone in the community can live in peace” (Forestry Officer, Town of Atsugishi).

The official in charge of Shibecha Town, which has also suffered extensive damage, says that it is important to steadily search for traces of the animals.

“We are planning to set traps again this year based on the results of our analysis of OSO18’s behavior and its path. We can’t do a DNA analysis based on footprints alone, so we will set traps in such a way that when a brown bear, as is its habit, stands up in a tree and rubs its back, it leaves hairs on the barbed wire that is wrapped around it.”

The damage so far has been concentrated in the summer months of July through September. It is hoped that this will be resolved before the threat is in full swing, but will it be?