The key facts
- Hunting Supervision of the Magadan region: bears in the region have already gone into hibernation, including around Magadan
- The risk of encountering 'shatuns' — individuals that have not fallen asleep due to illness or young age — remains in the forests
- In the Moscow region, according to media reports, bears may not hibernate due to prolonged rains and the risk of dens being flooded
Bears have already gone into hibernation in the Magadan region
Bears in the Magadan region have entered winter hibernation, but people still need to exercise caution in the forests. This was reported by Elena Slobodyanyuk, head of the region's Hunting Supervision Directorate, in an interview with RIA Novosti, cited by Gazeta.Ru.
Who are 'shatuns' and why the coast falls asleep later
According to Slobodyanyuk, so-called 'shatuns' — individuals that have not gone into hibernation due to illness or being too young — can be found in the forests. She also explained that on the coast, bears traditionally lie down later than in the central districts of the region: it is warmer around Magadan and snow falls later. Nevertheless, she noted, 'we already have freezing weather and a snow cover has formed. So the bears are already asleep here too.'
A different situation in other regions
Unlike the Magadan region, in the Moscow region bears, according to media reports, may not go into winter hibernation at all due to unstable weather and prolonged rains. The Telegram channel Mash reported that precipitation could flood the dens, and the bears would have to look for new places to sleep — in that case, there is a risk that they will not lie down and will start wandering through the forests of the Moscow region. Earlier it was reported that in Buryatia, on the contrary, bears had begun going into hibernation and were coming to populated areas less often.
