Mapping anthropogenic food sources that drive brown bear activities in settlements

Human–wildlife conflicts often arise from overlapping resource use and the availability of human-derived foods. Over the past century, human waste, as well as small-scale household horticulture and agriculture, have created predictable anthropogenic food sources in and around settlements that attract various wild animals, including brown bears (Ursus arctos), into close proximity to people, often leading to negative outcomes. Identifying and characterizing these attractants is therefore essential for effective conflict mitigation, particularly in parapatric landscapes. In this study, we mapped the location, type, abundance, and accessibility of anthropogenic attractants for brown bears within the town of Bàile Tuşnad, Romania, and assessed indicators of local human awareness by evaluating the use of protective measures during a 5-day survey from 26 June to 1 July 2022. We documented 711 potential feeding points, including 82 garbage receptacles and 629 fruit trees, most of which were accessible to bears (85.67% of garbage receptacles and 89.45% of fruit trees). Our results indicate that even relatively small amounts of anthropogenic food can incentivize bears to enter urban areas in search of predictable and easily accessible resources. These findings underscore the need for targeted management strategies that reduce attractant availability, particularly unsecured human waste, in settlements bordering forested habitats. Implementing such measures is crucial for sustainable bear conservation and for minimizing human–wildlife conflicts in human-dominated landscapes.