A quarter of the peak time… “hunter shortage” If this situation continues, we will not be able to fight “bears”! What to do about the problem of aging hunting clubs?

Hunting clubs” are increasingly mobilized when bears appear in the wild…originally an organization of “hunting enthusiasts

There is no end to the news of bears appearing in the wild. According to preliminary figures released by the Ministry of the Environment on October 1, a record 180 people in 18 prefectures were affected by bears between April and the end of October.

In past years, bear appearances have tended to increase from October, before they go into hibernation, but this year there has been a particularly large number of sightings in human settlements. This year, however, there has been a particularly large number of bear sightings in human settlements.

Acorns, which are the bears’ food, are in short supply throughout Japan, and in Hokkaido there are many areas with poor harvests of mountain grapes and kokuwa.

Bears usually go into hibernation from early to mid-December, but they hibernate later in years when there is plenty of bait, and earlier when there is no bait. This year, with the lack of bait, it may be a little earlier.

However, before that time, they will probably extend their range to human settlements in search of food, and in Honshu, they may come out to eat persimmons around private homes. It would be a nuisance for humans.”

Professor Yoshikazu Sato of Dairy Farming University, who is well versed in bear ecology and is at the forefront of Hokkaido’s brown bear countermeasures, points out.

Because of the unusually frequent appearances of bears, hunting clubs, which are responsible for hunting and extermination, will have more opportunities to mobilize their services. However, many hunting fraternities face the problem of aging hunters and a shortage of personnel. For example, the Hokkaido Hunting Friendship Association, which consists of 71 chapters in Hokkaido, has 5,361 members, nearly a quarter of its peak membership.

The Hunting Fraternity Association is basically an organization of hunting enthusiasts, and the membership rate is quite high. Some of them shoot birds, some specialize in deer and wild boar, and some hunt bears.

However, the hurdles to owning a hunting rifle are high, and I don’t think as many of the younger generation are as interested in hunting wild animals with a gun as they used to be in the first place.

Bears once fetched up to 1 million yen each in Hokkaido, including fur, meat, and bear gall. At the same time, shooting bears was connected to protecting the safety of the local community, which made it worthwhile. Now, however, the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law and the Washington Convention have restricted commercial trade in bear gall bladders, and their pelts have lost all market value, as they are no longer profitable. The only compensation for shooting bears is a daily allowance or a reward for each bear.

This makes it difficult to increase the number of bearers. On the other hand, active hunters are getting older. I think that is the current situation of the hunting clubs.

Still, local governments have no choice but to rely on local hunting clubs, which play a key role in bear extermination.

Most hunters who have specialized skills in pest control are members of hunting fraternities,” he says. They have know-how that has been passed down through local chapters and subcommittees, which serve as units for local activities, and they also have knowledge of the local topography and bear behavior patterns based on their many years of experience.

Nowadays, members of hunting clubs are often commissioned by local governments and dispatched when requested to do so. In some cases, a daily allowance is set for the dispatch, while in other cases, a reward is paid for the capture of one animal, and the compensation varies from municipality to municipality.

In any case, as long as the members of the hunting clubs are healthy and able to take charge of bear extermination, there is nothing better than continuing the work while passing on skills and knowledge to younger members.