The man in his 20s was hiking on the stratovolcano Mount Rausu when he was attacked by a bear early on Thursday, according to local media. Bleeding profusely from a leg, he was dragged into the forest – and vanished.
The hiker was not found dead until Friday afternoon. Before that, trackers had found a torn, bloody shirt, a watch, and a hat in the forest – as well as trees and soil splattered with blood, according to Kyodo News.
Hunters are reported to have caught and killed a bear near the hiking trail on the island of Hokkaido after the incident, but pending DNA analysis, it is unclear if it is the perpetrator.
The number of brown bears on Hokkaido was estimated in 2023 to be around 11,600.
