Japan's Unlikely Solution: Microchipping Bears to Balance Conservation and Control Hyogo prefecture, located on the main island of Honshu, has been grappling with a rising bear population since the 1990s.
In response, officials began a unique conservation effort in 2003 by microchipping bears to track their movements and behavior.
The initiative was prompted by Japan's changing environmental landscape: after years of decline, the country's bear population had begun to rebound significantly.