1) Livestock: Bear predation on livestock is by far the most widespread conflict. Although all species such as cattle, horses, goats and semi-domestic reindeer can be killed by bears, depredation on domestic sheep is the most serious and widespread conflict. Losses vary widely throughout Europe (Kaczensky, 1996) depending on husbandry techniques. At the extreme end of the spectrum is Norway, where sheep are grazed without supervision in forest habitats during summer. A total of 15-30 bears kill 3000 - 4000 sheep each year (around 100 sheep per bear per year). At the other end are countries in southern and eastern Europe where sheep are constantly guarded by shepherds and guarding dogs. Losses rarely exceed 5-10 sheep per bear per year. This illustrates that while the potential for bear-livestock conflicts is enormous, there are established methods to minimize it using traditional husbandry techniques (Linnell et al., 1996). Modern solutions such as electric fencing are also used successfully in countries like Sweden.

2) Beehives: Bear damage to beehives is common throughout Europe and can be of local economic importance. Traditional preventative methods have included placing the hives on raised platforms or inside wooden structures. Modern electric fences have also proved to be successful at preventing damage.

3) Crops: Bear damage to orchards and crops is widespread, but not as well documented as damage to beehives and livestock.

4) Game species: Bear predation on wild ungulates is a potential source of competition with human hunters. The problem is mainly confined to predation on moose in the boreal forest habitats of the Scandinavian and the Northeastern populations. The full impact of bear predation is still being discussed and requires further research.

5) Bear – human interaction: Bear attacks on people are generally very rare in Europe but occasionally happen and can result in severe wounding or even death of people. Romania is a possible exception, where attacks and deaths have been far more common than in other parts of Europe. Reasons include the release of non-European bears into the population, and the extreme high densities created by the management system during the communist period (Swenson et al., 1996). Bears that loose their shyness are a major conservation issue, especially in small populations where every single bear is valuable for increasing the population. Instead of shooting a nuisance bear aversive conditioning is often tried first to discourage a bear from seeking food close to humans. These measures include; shooting with rubber bullets, electric shocks, fire crackers or chasing bears with dogs. Translocation of "problem bears" is very rarely used in Europe (Linnell et al., 1997).

6) Other conflicts: Many other minor conflicts exist such as damage to containers of chain-saw oil, stores of grain and pellets used to feed wild ungulates during winter, and even to fish ponds.

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