Formosan black bears, which are endemic to Taiwan, have recently been spotted on mountain trails at lower altitudes in Yushan National Park, park rangers said yesterday.
Formosan black bears used to be found in forests throughout Taiwan, but the expansion of human activity and land development has gradually forced the animals to retreat deeper into the mountains.
The Yushan National Park Administration said the bears have only been spotted at high altitudes in recent years.
But last month some rangers found bear tracks around a mountain hut in the Yushan park at a medium elevation where mountain climbers like to camp.
Early this month, park rangers also spotted fresh claw scratches made by bears on tree trunks along a mountain trail between Dongpu (東埔) and Guangao (觀高) in Nantou County’s Sinyi Township (信義).
“Reports from rangers show a trend, with Formosan black bears venturing into mountainous regions frequented by humans,” an administration official said.
As to why Formosan black bears were reappearing in lower-altitude forests, the official said they could be attracted by the smell of food left behind by mountain climbers.
In addition, the official said, the number of other species, such as barking deer and goats, along mountain trails had increased in recent years, which may be drawing the bears down from higher altitudes.
With the chances of running into Formosan black bears increasing, the official reminded mountain climbers to remain calm and composed if they encounter a bear.
“While Formosan black bears can be ferocious and dangerous, they will usually not attack unless they are threatened, hurt or feel that their cubs are in danger,” the official said.
The best thing to do in the event of an encounter with a bear is to stay calm, try not to provoke the animal and leave the vicinity immediately, the official said.
The official said Formosan black bears, although strong, sturdy and skilled at mountain climbing, were less agile and slower than other carnivores.
Mountain climbers are advised to refrain from climbing trees or pretending to be dead if they come across a bear.
Former Czech Republic-based Taiwanese researcher Cheng Yu-chin (鄭宇欽) has been sentenced to seven years in prison on espionage-related charges, China’s Ministry of State Security announced yesterday. China said Cheng was a spy for Taiwan who “masqueraded as a professor” and that he was previously an assistant to former Cabinet secretary-general Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰). President-elect William Lai (賴清德) on Wednesday last week announced Cho would be his premier when Lai is inaugurated next month. Today is China’s “National Security Education Day.” The Chinese ministry yesterday released a video online showing arrests over the past 10 years of people alleged to be
THE HAWAII FACTOR: While a 1965 opinion said an attack on Hawaii would not trigger Article 5, the text of the treaty suggests the state is covered, the report says NATO could be drawn into a conflict in the Taiwan Strait if Chinese forces attacked the US mainland or Hawaii, a NATO Defense College report published on Monday says. The report, written by James Lee, an assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of European and American Studies, states that under certain conditions a Taiwan contingency could trigger Article 5 of NATO, under which an attack against any member of the alliance is considered an attack against all members, necessitating a response. Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty specifies that an armed attack in the territory of any member in Europe,
LIKE FAMILY: People now treat dogs and cats as family members. They receive the same medical treatments and tests as humans do, a veterinary association official said The number of pet dogs and cats in Taiwan has officially outnumbered the number of human newborns last year, data from the Ministry of Agriculture’s pet registration information system showed. As of last year, Taiwan had 94,544 registered pet dogs and 137,652 pet cats, the data showed. By contrast, 135,571 babies were born last year. Demand for medical care for pet animals has also risen. As of Feb. 29, there were 5,773 veterinarians in Taiwan, 3,993 of whom were for pet animals, statistics from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency showed. In 2022, the nation had 3,077 pediatricians. As of last
XINJIANG: Officials are conducting a report into amending an existing law or to enact a special law to prohibit goods using forced labor Taiwan is mulling an amendment prohibiting the importation of goods using forced labor, similar to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) passed by the US Congress in 2021 that imposed limits on goods produced using forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. A government official who wished to remain anonymous said yesterday that as the US customs law explicitly prohibits the importation of goods made using forced labor, in 2021 it passed the specialized UFLPA to limit the importation of cotton and other goods from China’s Xinjiang Uyghur region. Taiwan does not have the legal basis to prohibit the importation of goods