Brown bear Ursus arctos - Dabas aizsardzības pārvalde

Introduction
Despite its rarity in modern Latvia, brown bear Ursus arctos is a typical mammal species of the East
Baltic that came to the territory of Latvia after the last Ice Age, i.e., about 9,000-11,000 years ago
(Tauriņš 1982; Timm et al. 1998). In the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th century, the Latvian
brown bear population was totally destroyed and there is no evidence of breeding in the territory of Latvia
for more than 100 years. Looking at this fact superficially, it is unclear why there are so few bears in the
country that on the whole still has got very rich biodiversity while in neighbouring Estonia bear
population is so big that it should be regulated by hunting. At the same time, it is possible that the
absence of bears in the habitat has a smaller impact on other species compared to other large carnivores –
wolves, lynx and wolverines (that are extinct in Latvia). Bear’s ecological niche is not so unique and
overlaps with other, more numerous species, such as badger, pine marten and wild boar. Besides, these
food competitors of the brown bear breed much quicker and adapt to the human presence much easier.
As the largest European predator with a relatively long life expectancy and seasonally divided life cycle,
bear has a lot of specific requirements in relation to its environment. These requirements are related to the
rest of the natural environment, human activities and also such environmental factors as climate. Due to
the scarcity of bears in Latvia, the inventory of these requirements in Latvia is still not finished, therefore,
we are unable to provide any specific recommendations for habitat conservation and improvement,
including establishment of new protected areas which is usually the most essential measure in rare species
conservation. It is much more important at the moment to carefully monitor population development and
to ensure cooperation between the relevant institutions as well as to inform and raise awareness amongst
the general public.
The most important task at the moment is to assess as fully as possible human – bear coexistence. This
assessment should be based both on the local and international experience. At the same time one has to
realise that if the bear conservation is successful and its protection regime is increased, it is likely that
these animals will come into contact with humans more and more often and that will be the determining
factor for the brown bear’s future in our country.
The goal of the updated bear action plan is to provide the existing species conservation system with
the newest scientific information and experience obtained since 2003. The most significant difference
in the updated plan is a broader, more regional approach and a stronger emphasis on species
conservation measures in Latvia in close connection with the status on the Baltic population level.
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