As temperatures dip with the season, you may notice yourself feeling a little more peckish. In fact, the Japanese refer to this time of year with the term ʳÓû¤ÎÇï (shokuyoku no aki), meaning ¡°autumn is the season of appetite.¡±

Do you know who else is hungry? Bears. This year has seen many instances of ÐÜ (kuma, bears) coming down from ɽ (yama, the mountains) and into our Éú»î‡ü (seikatsuken, living environments), often in סլ½Ö (Âᨱ³Ù²¹°ì³Ü²µ²¹¾±, residential areas).

According to the Environment Ministry, October and November are (t¨­min ni sonaete shokuyoku ga masu jiki, the time when [bears] have more appetite in preparation for hibernation). Indeed, ʳÓû¤ÎÇï doesn¡¯t just apply to humans.