Frequent incidents

Bear attacks: Trentino now wants to kill animals

Dangerous encounters with bears occur time and again in Trentino.

(Bild: AFP/Olivier MORIN)

A bear attacked a man in the woods of Bleggio Superiore in Trentino in northern Italy on Saturday afternoon. The 33-year-old was out alone looking for mushrooms when he was suddenly attacked from behind. Incidents occur time and again in the region.

The bear knocked him to the ground, hit him several times with its paws and injured him on his back and arms before running away. The man ran back to the nearest village, where he asked for help. Genetic traces on the man's clothing are said to identify the predator. The bear is to be killed in accordance with bear management regulations in Trentino.

The attack occurred at a time of year when bears are slowly going into hibernation, although these animals are now also being spotted in winter due to climate change and mild temperatures. Bleggio Superiore is a village between Riva del Garda and Tione and is located in an area where a high bear presence has long been reported.

Repeated incidents in the region
Not far from Bleggio Superiore, in Dro, a French tourist was attacked by a bear while jogging in the forest in July. A few days later, the animal was identified thanks to DNA traces. It was the female bear "KJ1", which has since been killed.

"JJ4" killed a jogger in Trentino.

(Bild: AFP)

In April 2023, jogger Andrea Papi was attacked and killed by the female bear Gaida, named "JJ4", in the woods of Caldes in the Val di Sole valley in Trentino. The animal was captured and taken to an enclosure near Trento. The bear was supposed to move to a high-security enclosure in the Black Forest this year. However, the animal's arrival at the Alternative Wolf and Bear Park in the Black Forest has been postponed until spring 2025. This is partly due to weather-related delays in the construction of the enclosure, a spokesperson said this week.

Population to be contained
Since the return of the bear to Trentino with the "Life Ursus" project, there have also been other attacks on humans. Trentino recently approved a draft law aimed at curbing the bear population. The bill provides for the possibility of killing up to eight animals per year. According to the latest estimates, there are more than 100 bears in the area.

Animal rights activists have repeatedly called for people to be made more aware of wild animals or for wildlife corridors to be set up. The Italian Environment Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin had campaigned for a sterilization campaign for the bears.