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 食欲の秋 (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 熊 (kuma, bears) coming down from 山 (yama, the mountains) and into our 生活圏 (seikatsuken, living environments), often in 住宅街 (jūtakugai, residential areas).
According to the Environment Ministry, October and November are 冬眠に備えて食欲が増す時期 (tōmin ni sonaete shokuyoku ga masu jiki, the time when [bears] have more appetite in preparation for hibernation). Indeed, 食欲の秋 doesn’t just apply to humans.
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