I'm Not Afraid of the Wolf APS and WWF Trentino Alto Adige/Südtirol: "The presence of the bear on Monte Bondone is neither new nor an emergency. Sightings shouldn't automatically be considered alarming. What is concerning, however, is the climate fueled on social media by anti-large carnivore extremist groups, who are too often given visibility."
The Monte Bondone area has been part of the brown bear's range in Trentino for decades and is a particularly suitable territory for the species' presence. The Autonomous Province of Trento itself, many years ago, identified the Bondone-Stivo group as one of the main areas affected by bear presence in western Trentino. Therefore, speaking today about sightings on Bondone as if we were dealing with an unusual phenomenon risks giving residents and tourists a distorted view of reality.
The sightings of recent weeks certainly deserve attention and proper management, especially where the animals may be attracted to anthropogenic food sources. It is therefore appropriate to intervene in waste and garbage management, as the Municipality of Trento is doing, albeit belatedly, but management and prevention are one thing; an emergency is another.
To date, publicly available information does not describe any particularly significant incidents on Mount Bondone, other than a few bear sightings, as happens every year. Many of the animals were observed from a great distance; for this reason, it is not even clear whether the multiple sightings involve the same individual. We therefore do not understand what concrete evidence is behind the request by some tourism operators to cull bears simply because they are observed in an area where their presence is completely natural, as is the case in the rest of Trentino.
Tourism in Trentino is not threatened by bears
Even more difficult to support with data is the idea that the presence of bears in itself represents a threat to tourism. In September 2025, the Autonomous Province of Trento presented a Doxa survey commissioned by Trentino Marketing on a representative sample of over 2.000 Italians. The results are extremely clear: For 67% of those interviewed, the presence of bears doesn't change their choice to spend a holiday in Trentino; for 20%, it actually increases their interest, and for only 13%, it decreases it.
Among those actually considering a holiday in Trentino, the percentage of those who consider bears to be a factor capable of increasing their interest rises to 26%. And even the actual tourism figures tell a very different story from that of a region penalized by large carnivores: the 2025 summer season saw a 4,9% increase in both arrivals and overnight stays compared to the previous year, making it the best summer season of the last decade.
The bear, therefore, is also one of the elements that make Trentino's natural heritage extraordinary and, for a significant portion of visitors, represents an added value and a source of interest. A region that truly intends to deseasonalize its offerings—as climate change increasingly reminds us—without losing sight of its identity as a natural Alpine environment should take these numbers seriously, without allowing the discussion to be dictated by demagoguery and the positions of a few extremist groups.
Fear cannot be manufactured on social media
What concerns us most is the growing consensus surrounding large carnivores. On social networks, particularly Facebook, there are active groups and pages that are strongly hostile to the presence of bears and wolves. This opposition is, of course, entirely legitimate: less so is systematically transforming sightings and normal episodes of wildlife presence into alarm situations.
Not appealing to fear doesn't mean denying the problems associated with the presence of bears. Individuals exhibiting truly problematic behavior must be identified and managed according to regulations and protocols, including removal when the conditions are met. However, a sighted bear doesn't automatically mean it's a problem bear, and the presence of a bear in its habitat doesn't constitute an emergency. Working for safety without instilling fear of large carnivores isn't just a possibility: it's a duty, for all citizens and institutions.
The press also has a responsibility
Finally, we believe that the information world must also question its role. Giving space is legitimate. Continually turning the statements of the most extreme groups into the yardstick by which to measure the opinion of an entire community is another matter.
The press should give at least as much space to scientific data, tourism figures, and visitor expectations, comparing them, where necessary, with the natural vocation of an area that cannot be transformed into the center of Milan, and to the voices of the thousands of people who visit the Trentino mountains every day without experiencing the presence of wildlife with fear, dread, or a sense of emergency.
Monte Bondone is a living mountain, frequented by people and inhabited by wildlife. Bears, like deer, foxes, roe deer, and others, have long been a part of it. Learning to properly manage their presence, reducing artificial food sources, informing residents and tourists, and addressing truly problematic individuals is the path forward. This, along with small changes in our mountain behavior, reflects the greater awareness that scientific knowledge has given us in recent decades, as well as the necessary respect that increased attendance demands if we want to continue to enjoy the natural environment in which we live.
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Press release signed by I'm Not Afraid of the Wolf APS and WWF Trentino Alto Adige / Südtirol
Opening photo by Massimo Vettorazzi / Beholding Nature