Role of municipalities and future prospects for wildlife management of Japanese Black Bear　The case of Morioka city in Iwate and Karuizawa Town in Nagano

摘要

In recent years, the alleviation of friction between humans and wildlife has become an issue throughout Japan. The response of municipalities has been to resort to direct measures like the extermination of animals in the event of damage and destruction. However, the amended Wildlife Protection and Hunting Law passed in 1999 calls for a change in a wildlife management perspective at both the national and local levels.This paper concludes that, given the above conditions, municipalities should focus on management of bear attractant, dissemination of information, and procedures for dealing with bear sightings. Additionally, prefectures and surrounding municipalities should assist in the management of habitat and individuals.