日本北部地區熊出沒 已導致4人喪命

People in northern Japan have been warned to stay away from mountain forests after four people were killed in a spate of bear attacks.

在因一連串的熊襲擊事件而使4人喪命之後，日本北部的居民嫌疑被警告遠離山區森林。

Police in Akita prefecture found the body of a woman they suspect was mauled by a bear in a mountain forest. The victim, Suzuki, 74, suffered injuries so horrific that local authorities were initially unable to identify her.

日本秋田縣警方日前發現了一具女人的屍體，他們懷疑這是因受到山中的熊類重創所致。受害者鈴木年齡今年74歲，身上傷痕是如此的慘不忍睹，以至於地方當局最初都無法確定她的身份。

Suzuki, who lived in neighbouring Aomori prefecture, had gone to the area alone to pick edible wild plants, according to public broadcaster NHK. Her death comes soon after three men – two in their seventies and one in his sixties – died from what have been described as "severe" injuries sustained in separate attacks in the same area.

據NHK公共電臺報道，鈴木住在青森縣附近，曾獨自一人去摘食野生植物。在她死亡之前，已經有另外三名男子在同一區域遭受到了襲擊，因"嚴重"的傷害而亡。這其中有兩人都是70多歲，另一人60多歲。

The men were foraging for bamboo shoots when they were attacked, Japanese media reported.

根據日本媒體報道，這些男子是在採摘竹筍的時候被襲擊的。

Takeshi Komatsu, a local vet, said it was possible that the four were killed by the same bear. "After tasting human flesh for the first time, the bear may have realised that it can eat them," Komatsu told Kyodo news agency.

當地獸醫北野武小松表示，這四人很可能是遭到了同一只熊的襲擊。武小松接受日本共同通訊社採訪時表示。："在第一次嚐了人肉之後，熊可能意識到人可以吃。"

While officials have set traps and told people not to go into the mountains in search of plants and vegetables.

目前政府官員已經設定了陷阱，並警告人們不要進入山林尋找植物或野菜。

Sightings of brown bears and black Asiatic bears in northern Japan have risen to over 1,200 already this year, almost twice the number reported last year. Aside from Akita, there have been sightings of mother with their cubs in several other prefectures, as well as reports of injuries due to bear attacks.

據悉，在日本北部目擊到的棕熊及亞洲黑熊的數量今年已經上升至1200頭，幾乎是去年報道的兩倍。除了秋田縣，也有人目擊到母熊帶著小熊出現在其他幾個縣，此外也有遭熊類襲擊受傷的報道。