First brown bear seen in 150 years at northern Spain
Brown bears have been a protected species in Spain since 1973. In an effort to consolidate the bear population in the Pyrenees between France and Spain, brown bears from Slovenia have been introduced over the past two decades
A brown bear was spotted traversing a rugged and sparsely populated area of north-west Spain for the first time in 150 years.
Images of the animal were captured on cameras set up by a crew shooting the film Montaña ou Morte (Mountain or Death) in the Invernadeiro national park in Galicia's Ourense province of northern Spain, reports The Guardian.
The area is known as the home of wolves, deer and wild boars, this is believed to be the first time a brown bear has been seen in more than a century.
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"The bear, a male aged between three and five, is the first to be filmed in the area and probably the first to have crossed through the region in the past 150 years," the production company Zeitun Films said in a statement.
According to two local wildlife rangers Ricardo Prieto Rochas and Tomás Pérez Hernández, the bear appeared here after making its way south from the Sierra del Caurel mountains and stayed here for the entire winter.
"Years of conservation work in the Invernadeiro national park have allowed it to become a suitable habitat for the brown bear," the statement added.
Brown bears have been a protected species in Spain since 1973. In an effort to consolidate the bear population in the Pyrenees between France and Spain, brown bears from Slovenia have been introduced over the past two decades.
One of the bears – known as Goiat, which means "lad" in the local dialect – has enraged farmers in north-west Catalonia by preying on their horses, sheep and goats, and demolishing beehives.
Goiat is also thought to be responsible for a string of recent attacks on sheep in the neighbouring region of Aragón, bolstering calls for him to be removed from the area.
