There have been several recent reports of bears repeatedly coming close to homes in Ylöjärvi, just 11km from the city of Tampere.
Last Friday, the Finnish Wildlife Agency issued permits to chase away two bears that were roaming in the Mutala neighbourhood of Ylöjärvi. The local hunters’ association was allowed to take measures to repel the bear in the interest of public safety.
Such a permit is issued when large predators approach human settlements or behave threateningly towards people. It means that the association can try to scare the bears off using dogs or vehicles, for instance.
While brown bears in Finland can weigh up to 230kg, they very rarely attack humans.
Kimmo Alakoski, head of the Nokia region's game management association, said that bear sightings in residential areas of the Pirkanmaa region have simply become more common due to the increase in the number of bears.
"We see this phenomenon every spring. Mostly, these situations occur when they are looking for food in the spring and drift close to human settlements," he told Yle.
Alakoski predicted that the bear population in Pirkanmaa will grow at an accelerating rate in the future as well, as hunting permits may be in short supply next autumn.
Last autumn, the Supreme Administrative Court ruled that most bear hunting exception permits granted in 2022 were illegal after complaints were filed. Hunters expect the same to happen again this year.
A similar process has also taken place since last autumn regarding lynx hunting permits.
Bear hunting is only allowed with special permits, except in reindeer herding areas.
Managing bear population has become "difficult"
According to the Finnish Wildlife Agency’s game manager in the North Häme region, Marko Mikkola, managing the bear population through special hunting permits has become more difficult due to complaints.
"There have been complaints about the exemptions that have been granted to hunt large animals in recent years. They have been blocked by administrative courts. Administrative law has resulted in several jurisprudential solutions that have made management very difficult," he said.
Last year the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) said that Finland's bear population had fallen for the second year in a row. It estimated that there were between 1,740 and 1,925 bears in Finland in 2022, a decline of 20 percent compared to 2021.
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