The Bear is often characterised as vicious and dangerous in our books, movies and media in general . This mis-characterization is dangerous to the Bear and other apex predators. The primary reason Man feels threatened by apex predators is that it threatens the ego of Man. The general position by Man is to retain the top of the so called pyramid which has resulted in destroying of almost anything that feels threatening.
The truth is, Bears are significantly less dangerous than the most dangerous organism of all...Man. Bear behaviour is more predictable than human behavior. For example, a bear is more likely to be aggressive with humans when they feel they and/or their young are threatened or challenged in some way. Actual attacks on humans are in fact very, very rare; a fraction of domestic dog attacks on humans and attacks by other humans... And bear attacks have been dropping as human intervention into their territory is increasing at alarming rates.
The issue here is that if the bear image is continually perpetuated as aggressive, it's ultimate demise is assured as well as other apex predators. We need to see the Bear and all other creatures on earth as living with us and not against us.
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