A bear activist group said more bears should be released into the Pyrenees to ensure their long-term viability. The Ferus association has faced off against farmers who say the animals are a threat to their livestock.
Image: picture-alliance/Arco Images
Advertisement
French animal activist group Ferus said on Wednesday that more bears should be released into the Pyrenees.
Wildlife experts say there are only about 40 brown bears living in the mountain range, which straddles the France-Spain border.
Environmental activists claim the bears help maintain a fragile ecosystem threatened by human activity and climate change. Farmers maintain the bears are decimating flocks of sheep.
In October, French authorities airlifted two pregnant bears from Slovenia into the Pyrenees to help boost their meager population, as tensions flared between farmers and elected officials.
The two bears — named Claverita and Sorita, meaning "heiress" and "little sister" in the local Bearnaise language — are "still in excellent shape," according to France's National Office for Hunting and Wildlife (ONCFS). This month it released a video of Sorita:
"The good news of 2018 is without doubt the release of two bears in the Bearn region in October," the Ferus association said. "But there's still a long road ahead of us."
Opposition from farmers
In September, protesting farmers poured blood and dumped sheep carcasses in front of the office of one mayor who backed the plan to introduce the two bears.
Some farmers have vowed to shoot them on sight.
Last year, farmers in the Pyrenees received compensation for 798 farm animals and 25 beehives destroyed by bears, or where bear involvement could not be ruled out, according to official figures.
"Complete security for the bears is far from assured because of an anti-bear minority which remains violent," Ferus said.
Bears from Slovenia were first imported into France in 1996, when hunters had all but wiped out the native population.
Paddington and other beloved bears in film and literature
Paddington Bear appeared in more than 20 books written by Michael Bond, who died last year aged 91. Here are other famous fictional bears in film and literature.
This little bear from Peru arrived at Paddington station with only a sun hat and suitcase in hand. The Brown family found him there and took him along, naming him after the station where he was discovered. Author Michael Bond wrote the story of Paddington Bear, which was published in 1958. After an animated series, the film "Paddington" came out in 2014 film, followed by the sequel in 2017.
Image: StudioCanal
Winnie the Pooh
Sweet, scatterbrained and good-natured - that's Winnie the Pooh. The story of this lovable bear was written in the 1920s by Alan Alexander Milne, who made Pooh the most famous bear to have appeared in children's books. After his death, the rights to the stories were purchased by Walt Disney, and movies and series soon followed. In 2006, Pooh was even given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Image: dpa - Bildarchiv
The Bare Necessities
Baloo the bear is perhaps best-known as the sweet "Papa bear" from the Disney film "The Jungle Book." Many will be familiar with his catchy tune, "The Bare Necessities," which gained fame all over the world. The 1967 animated film is based loosely on a collection of stories published in the 1900s by English author Rudyard Kipling.
Lars the little polar bear
Lars lives with his parents in the middle of ice and snow in the North Pole. There, he embarks on plenty of exciting and dangerous adventures with his pals. This children's book series was written by Dutch author Hans de beer in 1987. It also received a television show in 1992 and was made into a film in 2001.
Image: picture alliance/United Archives/IFTN
Brother Bear
Set at the end of the Ice Age in North America, a boy named Kenai kills a bear, and in revenge, gets turned into one. Hunted by his own family, he finds a companion in a little bear named Kuma. This 2003 Disney movie is heavy on motives of love, friendship and forgiveness. In 2004, it was even nominated for an Oscar in the Best Animated Film category.
Image: picture-alliance/KPA
A bear with fatherly instincts
In the Russian animated series "Mascha and the Bear," the bear is a retired circus animal living in a forest hut. He hopes to enjoy his quiet twilight years, but a young girl named Mascha visits frequently, bringing new chaos with each encounter. "Mascha and the Bear" is one of the most famous Russian animated series to date.
Image: Masha and the Bear Ltd
Not only famous in animated form
French feature film "The Bear" from 1988 is the most successful film to have a real bear in the starring role. Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, the script is based on James Oliver Curwood’s novel "The Grizzly King." It depicts the adventures of a young bear that loses its mother and eventually befriends an older bear.
