A male hunter in his 50s has gone missing on Mt. Esan in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, local authorities said Tuesday, raising concern over his safety as a brown bear was sighted in the area three days earlier.Police and firefighters have launched a search operation, said authorities in Hakodate, where the 618-meter mountain is located close to a number of residential areas and schools.In Japan, sightings of bears coming down to populated areas in search of food have been on the rise amid a decline in human activity in mountainous areas and an increase in abandoned farms as a…READ FULL ARTICLE
