Hokkaido’s elusive cattle-attacking “ninja” bear shot by hunter

A three-year search for the “ninja bear” that attacked dozens of cattle in eastern Hokkaido has come to an end after it was found to have been shot by a hunter in July, local officials said Tuesday.

The brown bear is believed to have attacked a total of 66 cows since summer 2019, and was codenamed “OSO18” after the 18-centimeter footprint found at the first known attack site in the Shimoosotsubetsu district of Shibecha town.

The Hokkaido prefectural government’s regional bureau in Kushiro said Tuesday that DNA from the bear killed by the hunter matched that of samples from OSO18.

According to ...