Bear-Ly Alive

A Russian man is alive after being held captive by a bear for a month. Yes, you read that right...

The victim is said to have been severely injured and close to death when hunting dogs supposedly found him in Russia’s remote Tuva region.

The man was reportedly rushed to hospital where medics discovered he'd broken his spine after being set upon by the brown bear.

He is said to have told doctors that the predator had overpowered him  - then tossed him in its den where it kept him for a month.

According to the Siberian Times, Alexander explained: “The bear preserved me as food for later. I drank my own urine to survive."

A group of Russian hunters found Alexander after their dogs barked and refused to move on from a bear's den they passed in the forest, it's reported.

When the hunters checked inside the lair they apparently saw what they believed to be a "human mummy" - until they realized he was alive.

Dr Louise Gentle, senior lecturer in wildlife conservation at Nottingham Trent University, told Sun Online that a bear attacking, and dragging, a human into its den is a "vary rare thing to happen".

The expert, also a researcher in animal behaviour, explained: "It's amazing how this man survived.

"It's very rare for a bear to go near a human - bears are actually more wary of us and therefore avoid us.

"Yet in this case it seems the bear seized an opportunity and stored the man as food to eat at a later date. It is possible that the man somehow antagonised the animal - maybe the bear had cubs nearby and was protecting them.

"It's a weird scenario."

(photo: easttowest news)

(photo: esttowest news)

(photo: easttowest news)