IWMC.org - 2nd Symposium - Terrestrial Resources

Status of Asiatic Black Bear and Bear Farming in China Mr. Fan Zhiyong CITES Management Authority of China

Bears, especially the Asiatic black bear, were traditional hunting game in mountainous regions of China, and were considered as pests and killed for protecting crops first, and then for meat, skin and gall bladder before 1990. Bear hunting was regulated since 1950's in China but did not endanger bears' survival. One of the reasons is mainly that firearms are strictly controlled in China and hunting bears are very dangerous without guns. Even in the period of 1985 to 1989 when bears were captured from the wild to develop bear farms in many provinces of China, there was not significant pressure on wild populations of bears. After 1989 when the Wildlife Protection Law of China was promulgated, bears were protected in China.

There is very strong objection on farming bears to collect bile in the international conservation communities (Mills et al., 1992; IFAW, 1994; Highley et al., 1994 and 1995; Servheen, 1995; and Watkins, 1995). Their main points were that farming bears in captivity leads to even serious pressure for the struggling existence of wild bears; the farmed bears are tortured for satisfying human needs; they are kept in the cages all year long with steel tubes in the belly; the life of these bears lasts only 4-5 years while bears living in the wild can live for up to 30 years; and the production of the farmed bears will stimulate the market demand.

Doubtless development of bear farms would give the wild populations a pressure but it must be considered how strong the pressure is. During 1984 to 1989 when farming bears developed fastest in China, except a few of bears from zoos, most of the founders of bear farms were captured from the field. With careful analysis, only less than 1,000 individuals of bear from wild population were sent to bear farms each year in average from 1984 to 1989, and counted to only 1.6% of the present wild populations of bear. Even if this capture rate is multiply by three to compensate the mortality in capture, it is still less than the hunting pressure on American black bear (Ursus americanus), which is 8% (Watkins, 1995) or 5.6% (Rose,1995) in North America. The capture pressure on wild bears in China was very low and would not endanger the wild populations of bears.

It occurred in China that farmed bears were tortured in some bear farms, especially in individual ones, in the early days of the development of bear farms with quite simple and crude captive conditions and facilities, especially with backward technique of opening fistula with steel tubes in the belly to collect bile. The administrations concerned and some researchers of bear farms have noticed these problems as early as 1989, began to direct demonstrational bear farms, promoted others to follow demonstrational bear farms to improve their captive conditions and facilities, and studied new technique to collect bile. In 1993, the Ministry of Forestry issued "An Urgent Notice on Checking up and Rectifying Bear Farms", which claims to force use of new technique of opening fistula and draining bile without tubes and to provide certain size of rooms inside and outside for captive bears to rest and play. The advanced techniques of collecting bile and captive installations of demonstrational bear farms were spread and forced on the Working Forum on Management of Bear Farms in 1996, and unqualified bear farms were fixed to achieve the standards in a limited time. "The Notice on Strengthening the Management and Administration of Bear Farms" issued by the Ministry of Forestry in 1996 stipulated that the technique of opening fistula and draining bile without tubes in the belly must be used in any bear farms and that unqualified bear farms must improve their conditions in limited time otherwise they will be closed. The enforcement of these policies and stipulations under government documents has forced bear farms to improve their conditions and techniques and avoid the mistreatment of bears. The technique of opening fistula with self-tissue and the suitable captive facilities ensure bears' health and avoid mistreatment to farmed bears. Some bears operated by opening fistula with self-tissue are able to breed successfully.

IWMC World Conservation Trust