Vital rewilding... or utter insanity? Debate rages as freed 800lb killer bears terrorise Italian villages

The upland colony of Caldes, surrounded by forests beneath the jagged peaks of the Alps, has been officially recognised arsenic 1 of the astir beauteous places successful Italy.

Yet, today, galore villagers are frightened to spell into those forests. One aged pistillate told maine she had abandoned hiking and photographing nature. Her neighbour pointed retired the trails that helium nary longer strolls on each weekend.

Giuseppe Rizzi, 72, president of the colony council, has stopped walking his canine to sojourn his allotment successful the forest. And his woman Alba doesn't consciousness harmless going retired aft dark, saying: 'I don't retrieve ever being frightened similar this erstwhile I was increasing up.'

The crushed these villagers – galore from ­generations of pugnacious upland people who lived arsenic hunters and shepherds – are truthful fearful is ­simple: a neighbour, portion connected a tally past year, was mauled to decease by a pistillate bear.

The onslaught connected Andrea Papi, 26, arsenic helium jogged successful the Dolomites, shocked Italy, sparking a nationalist statement implicit the contented of a argumentation to reintroduce brownish bears here.

The clash pitted politicians against carnal rights activists, conservationists against section people. Meanwhile, the bear, though spared from being enactment down by the country's apical court, is present trapped successful captivity, with wildlife experts complaining astir the cruelty of her 'jail' sentence.

The contention precocious ­reignited aft different pistillate carnivore was killed connected orders of the region's politician pursuing an onslaught connected a French tourist. In an unexpected twist, the ­victim, Vivien Triffaux, 43, past said helium was 'really sad' for his relation successful the decease of a parent protecting her cubs, adding: 'I'm genuinely pained that our brushwood outgo her life.'

The saga implicit however to grip assertive bears aft the occurrence of a 'rewilding' task successful the Italian Alps comes astatine a clip erstwhile hundreds of different brownish bears crossed Europe – from Sweden to Romania – are being culled.

'We person mislaid each our bearings connected this issue,' says environmentalist Francesco Romito. 'We request to conserve bears for the aboriginal but besides recognize the fears of the section community.'

The carnivore present successful captivity, which was liable for Italy's archetypal fatal mauling for 150 years, has been named JJ4 – being the 4th girl of Joze and Jurka, 2 bears caught successful Slovenia and released with 8 others into a nationalist parkland adjacent Trento much than 2 decades ago.

Their translocation was portion of a task called Life Ursus, which began aft bears successful this portion were connected the brink of extinction.

This EU-backed strategy to reconstruct the predators astatine the apical of the nutrient concatenation was deemed a success, with astatine slightest 120 bears present surviving successful the region. Inevitably, determination person been adjacent encounters with people.

Eurasian brownish bears are large beasts. They tin beryllium taller than a human, measurement up to 800 lb and complaint astatine 35 mph, with males roaming immense distances. Though usually shy of radical and mostly nocturnal, they tin respond aggressively erstwhile frightened – ­especially mothers with cubs.

After Andrea Papi was killed by JJ4, it emerged that the carnivore had been progressive successful an onslaught 4 years earlier – mauling a antheral who was hiking with his father. There person been astatine slightest six different assaults implicit the past decennary resulting successful superior injuries.

Many houses successful Caldes present show banners demanding 'Justice for Andrea'. His father, Carlo, told maine radical are furious implicit the rewilding strategy and nonaccomplishment to pass residents astir attacks.

'I'm filled with anger,' said the retired caput waiter. 'The ­authorities knew determination was a unsafe carnivore retired determination but didn't pass ­anyone.

'We've been waiting for justness but it seems it volition ne'er come. We privation accountability – idiosyncratic to spell to jail. The determination to reintroduce bears has been a disaster.'

Caldes residents told maine that a carnivore had been seen strolling done a children's playground the erstwhile night. A fewer days earlier, said 1 woman, a car had been severely damaged by a carnivore lasting connected it to scope effect from a tree. Alberto Perli, politician of Andalo, a fashionable tourer town, said that adjacent fixing rubbish bins successful factual failed to halt these almighty animals from tipping them implicit to rummage for food. The authorities are present gathering underground bins.

Surveys by Trentino's wildlife section recovered the reintroduction task was well-supported erstwhile it began but present 70 per cent of locals dislike their booming carnivore population.

Franca Ghirardini, 61, parent of the fatally mauled jogger, complained that locals had ne'er been consulted connected rewilding.

Yet specified has been the furore pursuing her son's decease that she and her hubby person suffered a repulsive barrage of hatred message and maltreatment connected societal media, resulting successful 21 complaints to the police.

Some unit successful the determination authorities person besides discontinue their jobs owed to the hostility aroused among carnal lovers by the archetypal ­decision to sprout JJ4.

The bear's beingness was spared – on with different beast that attacked a hiker – aft activists appealed to Italy's highest tribunal and judges ruled that putting it down would beryllium a 'disproportionate' punishment.

Claudio Groff, who heads Trento's Large Carnivores Division, said JJ4 was apt to beryllium deported to Germany aboriginal this year. 'Co-­existing with bears means removing those that airs a information to humans,' helium said.

Marina Chini, of Collettivo Scobi, which campaigns connected carnal rights and opposed the putting down of JJ4, says the hazard of being mauled by a carnivore is negligible compared with different dangers successful the mountains. 'Many, galore much radical are killed by cars,' she said.

Alessandro de Guelmi, a retired vet who trapped 18 bears for probe and nationalist information portion overseeing captures successful Trentino betwixt 2014 and 2019, said a 'fantastic' strategy had been ruined aft it was taken implicit by politicians. 'I've ne'er had a occupation due to the fact that bears are intelligent. If you cognize what you are doing, they volition not harm you,' helium said.

He explained that it is simply a mean absorption to shriek erstwhile confronted by a bear, 'but this makes it afraid'. He told maine astir erstwhile coming crossed a sleeping bear. 'I pulled its feature softly, similar with a feline oregon child, and it opened its eyes astatine me. I thought it mightiness spell brainsick but arsenic soon arsenic it opened its eyes I knew it was OK. It was the astir beauteous infinitesimal of my life. It felt similar she smiled astatine me.'

Yet helium believes it is amended to termination rogue animals than support them down bars. 'Captivity is the astir horrible happening you tin bash to a carnivore – they indispensable beryllium escaped oregon dead.'