A group of hikers were climbing Dongmao Mountain, one of the "Seven Peaks of Guguan," on the 10th, when it was reported that one hiker may have been scratched by a cub. The Dongshi Forest District Office of the Forestry and Nature Conservation Bureau stated that no such report had been received. According to expert analysis, there is currently insufficient evidence to confirm the marks as those of a bear, and whether it was indeed a cub that caused the scratches remains under discussion and clarification.
"There really are bears!At 1:40 p.m. on December 10, 2016, at Pillar 17, there were two small bears with red collars that scratched the person in front of me." A female hiker who was climbing Dongmao Mountain posted on Facebook, stating that the male hiker walking in front of her was scratched by two small bears.
The Dongshi Forest District Office said it had not received any reports of people being scratched by bears and only learned of the incident through the internet. Experts analyzing the photos concluded that, based on normal black bear behavior, it is difficult to explain why such young cubs would actively scratch a person. Moreover, the scratches were located just below the armpits on the back of the body, which is inconsistent with how animals typically attack from the front. Additionally, the Taiwan black bears that have been captured, tagged, and released in the Daxue Mountain area do not have red collars, leaving insufficient evidence to confirm that the scratches on the hiker were caused by a black bear.
The Dongshi Forest District Office pointed out that since 2013 (102 in the Republic of China calendar), it has commissioned Huang Meixiu, a professor at the Graduate Institute of Wildlife Conservation at National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, to conduct research on the distribution of Taiwan black bears in the Daxue Mountain area. At the end of last year, a female bear was captured, tagged, and released in the Daxue Mountain area, and it was recently spotted out foraging with two cubs. The office urged the public not to panic or disturb black bears if encountered, but to remain quiet and slowly walk away. Drivers should also reduce speed when passing through to avoid collisions with wildlife.
(China Times)