Russian Bears Eating Corpses

A scorchingly hot summer has left Russia's vast population of bears without their traditional sources of food, leading the animals to dig up human corpses from municipal cemeteries for nourishment, the Guardian is reporting.

According to the World Wildlife Fund Russia, the bears are now focusing on graveyards because they offer a "refrigerator"-like supply of easy food. The case is reportedly similar to one that took place two years ago in the town of Kandalaksha, in the northern Karelia republic.

As Masha Vorontsova of WWF Russia told the Guardian:

"You have to remember that bears are natural scavengers. In the U.S. and Canada you can't leave any food in tents in national parks. In Karelia, one bear learned how to [open a coffin]. He then taught the others. They are pretty quick learners.

The story is horrible. Nobody wants to think about having a much loved member of their family eaten by a bear."

You can read the whole article at the Guardian here.