In Kamchatka in 2026, the number of bears entering populated areas decreased, but the number of shootings increased

In Kamchatka in 2026, the number of bears entering populated areas decreased compared to last year.

The number of forced shootings of bears has increased due to measures to regulate their numbers amid expectations of a difficult feeding situation.

In 2026, two people died from bear attacks in Kamchatka.

P.-KAMCHATSKY, September 29 – RIA Novosti. The number of bears entering populated areas in Kamchatka in 2026 decreased compared to last year, while the number of forced shootings increased, Evgeny Kravtsov, head of the federal state hunting control (supervision) department of the Kamchatka Territory, told reporters in Vladivostok.

“The number of shootings has increased, but we do not attribute this to the fact that the number of exits has increased. The number of exits has decreased in comparison with both 2024 and 2025,” Kravtsov said.

He explained that experts associate the increase in the number of shootings with measures to regulate the number of animals, which were strengthened this year amid expectations of a difficult feeding situation.

According to Kravtsov, in particular, the weak approaches of fish and the failure of the harvest of the main fattening feeds - those that bears use to accumulate fat reserves before wintering - were taken into account.

Particular attention was paid to the Elizovskaya agglomeration as the most densely populated area adjacent to bear habitats.

According to the authorities, a high alert regime is in effect in the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Ust-Kamchatsky Okrug due to the increasing frequency of bears entering populated areas. In the village of Palana, Tigil District, children are prohibited from being on the street unaccompanied by adults at night.