Bear population reaches record high in Shulgan-Tash Nature Reserve in Bashkiria

The population of brown bears has sharply increased in the Shulgan-Tash Nature Reserve in the Burzyansky District of Bashkiria. In 2025, a record number of bears was recorded — 59 individuals, the highest since monitoring began. Among them are eight females with cubs (mostly with two cubs each), five small bears, twenty medium-sized, and eleven large ones.

“This amounts to 2.7 animals per 100 hectares, which is a very high density! The animals have started approaching tourists at the museum and excursion complex and nearby areas. Therefore, people should not feed them or leave food waste — such actions could lead to fatal consequences,” the reserve’s management warned.

The annual bear census was conducted by protection inspectors. Early in the morning, they rode on horseback along all the stream floodplains in the area, recording bear tracks and measuring the width of the front paw prints. All the tracks were then marked on a map to estimate the approximate territory and number of individuals or family groups.

Earlier, Bashinform reported that residents of the closed town of Mezhgorye have been suffering from an influx of wild animals.

Author: Laysan Zakirova