Sloth bear attacks on the Deccan Plateau of Karnataka, India

Abstract: The sloth bear (Melursus ursinus) is endemic to India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka, and is among the least studied of all bear species. Sloth bears behave aggressively toward humans when they feel threatened and are considered among the most dangerous wild animals in India. Our research objective was to interview those that had close encounters with sloth bears and attack survivors so that we could learn from these unfortunate events and prepare persons to be safe in sloth bear country. Consequently, we interviewed 342 people—162 that had close encounters that did not result in attacks and 180 that were involved in attacks—in the southern Indian state of Karnataka between the years 1985 and 2016. Our surveys revealed that all attacks were defensive in nature, that people that had been making noise while moving through sloth bear country were less likely to be attacked, and that persons in groups of ≥2 were very rarely attacked. Nine percent of people that fought back during an attack were killed and 11% of people that attempted to run from the bear were killed. There were no deaths among people that fell to the ground and did not fight back. Drawing from this work and that of others, we provide suggestions for safe conduct in sloth bear country.