Shiretoko Peninsula: Brown Bears and Whales Drifting Ashore

Our guestouse in Rausu, Shiretoko Serai’s nature guide, Shohei Morita wrote a report from the 2021 Summer Season!

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

This year I could see many brown bears!

Along the Shiretoko Pass which connects Rausu to Utoro, I could see brown bears many times along the way. Due to the pandemic and its effects, this year the tourists coming to Shiretoko Peninsula was much less than usual, so we had less traffic, compared to before.

Also, I could see many brown bears on the boat cruises that leave from Rausu’s Aidomari fishing port. We used the small boat that is usually used for Kelp farming, and I was able to get this shot of the bear from the boat. From summer to autumn, brown bears are attracted to the small rivers along the coast to catch the salmon run.

A bear with a salmon

Year after year, the number of salmon are decreasing while the number of fishermen continues to increase. This makes the situation difficult and a lot of stress on the bears. But despite that, I saw a momma bear teaching her cub how to catch salmon.

There was an unusual encounter with the carcass of a whale washed ashore, and the brown bears gathered around it. It is said that it has been more than 10 years since a large whale had been washed ashore.

It is a large whale, perhaps either a fin whale or a humpback whale.

This is a mother bear with her two cubs who had been born this year. This year’s bad fishing year made the national news, but locally, for the fisherman and especially for the brown bears, it was a big blow. I just hope that this abnormal situation in the sea will end as soon as possible, and that there can be a return of the “Rich seas of Shiretoko.”
And I hope that these two cubs can survive the winter.

Photo & text: Shohei MORITA (Shiretoko Serai)
Observation: Summer – Autumn 2021, Rausu, Shiretoko, Hokkaido

*Contact  us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Beyond Cape Shiretoko: Mother and cub brown bears of Shiretoko Peninsula

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (4)

On a nice calm day, with no wind or waves, we cruised from Aidomari around Cape Shiretoko in search of brown bears just before Rusha river in Shari town.

天神さんの船で岬を越える

Now we are starting to see Cape Shiretoko! While on the cruise, depending on the location, the weather and conditions can change suddenly with wind and waves. On this day, Shiretoko was “stable”, but there was some waves along the way, since we were on an extended cruise.

知床岬の灯台

This is the Shiretoko Misaki lighthouse. After passing that point, we entered the Sea of Okhotsk where usually there is a significant difference in the sea conditions between the Rausu and Shari sides, which are separated by the Shiretoko mountain range. However, it was a calm and sunny day on both sides.

The Cape Shiretoko has a plateau at 30-40m high, but the vegetation there was cut in the pioneering days, has never returned. There is also a factor that the Ezo-sika deer population has increased too much and is ruining the vegetation. The area from the central part to the northern part of Shiretoko Peninsula became a national park in 1964 and was later designated as World Heritage Site in 2005. Currently power boats are not allowed on land, but you can observe the landscape and wildlife from boats along the coast.

廃屋となった番屋

Same as on the Rausu side, there are abandoned fishing houses “banya” along the coast on the Shari side as well. The terrain on the Shari side makes it much more challenging for humans to reach.

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (3)

Found them…the Brown bear mother and her cub.

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (5)

The cute scene of a baby bear trying to keep up with the mother bear.

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (2)

This little cub is just as curious about us. Since we perhaps were catching their attention too much, so we moved away from the coast and made our way towards the mountains.

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (6)

Another pair of bears. This mother had walking with her a very young cub.

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (7)

The mother bear makes her way up the slope while eating grass. And two little cubs trying to keep up.

知床半島のヒグマ Ezo-Brownbear Shiretoko 親子ヒグマ (9)

Looks like they are a bit worried about the boat, and I apologized to them for interrupting them.

Photo & text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Aug 2020, Shiretoko Peninsula
Special Thanks : Mr.Koichi TENJIN, Mr.Shohei MORITA (Shiretoko Serai知床サライ)

*Contact  us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Shiretoko Peninsula – Brown Bears Catching Pink Salmon

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (9)

In late August, the Shiretoko Peninsula sees the return of the Pink salmon. However, due to a lack of rainfall, the rivers are too shallow for the salmon to swim upstream. As a result, the fish gather along the shore, in the sea, near the mouth of the river.

This is where the Rausu fishermen set up their nets, as do the brown bears, in the same area. This is the time of year when the brown bears are the most hungry and thinnest. The bears will venture into the ocean to catch the pink salmon that cannot enter the river.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (12)

This is the scene near “Pekin-no-hana”, on Shiretoko Pennisula with the fishing brown bear. It is like the White-tailed eagle is sitting just behind the bear, as if saying “Hurry up and catch something!” As the bear heads into the ocean…

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (6)

A bear in the sea water.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (2)

The bear dunks its head into the water over and over, while swimming, to look for the Pink salmon underfoot.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (10)

It caught a female Pink salmon!

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (8)

The roe, fish eggs, started overflowing with every bite.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (11)

It is probably too tiring to keep swimming while eating, so the bear heads back to the beach. It was there for a while, munching on the salmon with its backside facing us. After finishing off the main parts, the bear heads back into the sea for another round.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (1)

The White-tailed eagle quickly moves in to secure the leftover food. Then the crows move in for some leftovers too.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (4)

Then, just when we thought this bear would return to fishing, it got distracted and started playing with the net buoys! This must have been a young bear that was still holding on to its playful nature. Our customers who were with us, really enjoyed watching the fun-loving cute bear.

知床半島 羅臼 ヒグマ ペキンの鼻 カラフトマス ヒグマ・フォト 知床サライ broen bear in Shiretoko (5)

Eventually, it tired of playing and returned to the beach. It was a lovely chance to catch the last moments of summer with the brown bear.

 

Photography & text : Mariko SAWADA

Special Thanks : Mr.Kokichi TENJIN & Shohei MORITA(SHIRETOKO SERAI(知床サライ)

*Contact  us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,