The government of Karelia supported the federal initiative to remove restrictions on hunting brown bears

The situation on the exits of brown bears to settlements has stabilized, and seasonal cases of wolves have increased since November. These issues were discussed at a meeting led by the Head of Karelia Artur Parfenchikov with the heads of municipalities.

In October, residents of the republic continued to inform the Ministry of Natural Resources of Karelia about the exits of wild animals to settlements. There were 64 such appeals, 34 for bears, 13 for wolves and 23 for foxes.

Most often, the output of wild animals last month was reported from Petrozavodsk (13), there were also signals from the Pryazhinsky district (9), Pudozhsky, Segezhsky, Olonets (6 appeals each) and a number of other territories.

According to 14 special permits issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources of Karelia to regulate bears that could potentially threaten the population, 7 individuals were produced: 3 in the White Sea District, 2 in the Kondopozhsky District, 2 in the Prionezhsky District. Of these, 2 animals - in October, 1 - in November.

- The Ministry of Natural Resources of Karelia held a meeting with all hunters to stimulate hunting for brown bears. Also, the Head of Karelia and our Ministry supported the initiative of the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia to remove the 30-day hunting period and to remove the brown bear from the list of limited species, said acting Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of Karelia Alexander Yurchenko.

The Ministry explained that from the autumn of 2025, the permit for the production of the bear is not valid for the entire season, but a maximum of 30 calendar days, which reduces the effectiveness of hunting. Today, the prey of the predator is also limited to the limits set for the region: for Karelia now it is 870 individuals. Excluding this rule from federal law would allow more hunting permits to be issued and increased bear prey.

On behalf of the Head of Karelia Artur Parfenchikov, operational groups were created in the districts and districts of the republic to immediately respond to the exits of brown bears to settlements. Now animals are preparing for winter hibernation, the number of their exits to settlements has decreased. It was decided that the work of the operational groups will continue on the appeals of citizens about the exits of wolves.

Summing up the meeting with municipalities, the Head of Karelia Artur Parfenchikov instructed the heads of districts and districts to immediately respond to all outings of wild animals. The priority is the safety of residents, the head of the republic stressed.

The Head of Karelia also instructed the regional Ministry of Natural Resources to study the issue of the regulatory use of the possibility of using firearms in case of emergency when meeting with a predator in a populated area, if there is a real and immediate threat to human life or health. An important condition is the presence of legal grounds for possession of weapons and compliance with security measures.