Taiwan's hunters and conservationists are working to promote a new trap designed to keep the country's endangered Formosan black bears safe.
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00:00The spares paw was wounded by a steel trap,
00:03the type often used by indigenous hunters in Taiwan
00:06to ensnare deer and wild boar.
00:31That's what happened to Zimun,
00:33a one-and-a-half-year-old male Formosan black bear
00:36rescued from a trap last October.
00:38Although he was released back into the wild after treatment,
00:42he was found dead weeks later.
00:44Zimun is just one of 18 bears
00:46discovered in traps in Taiwan since 2014.
00:49The NGO, Taiwan Black Bear Conservation Association,
00:52says six of these animals were found dead.
00:55To prevent such injuries and death,
00:57hunters, farmers and conservationists
01:00are collaborating to protect these animals
01:03by adopting a new type of trap.
01:05This new design can capture smaller prey
01:08without tightening to the point of causing severe injury or amputation.
01:27So far, the new snares seem to be working,
01:37which shows bears getting away unharmed.
01:58To date, over 5,600 of these traps
02:01have been given away for free in Taiwan.
02:04By working together, hunters, farmers and conservationists
02:08may one day remove the Formosan black bear
02:10from the endangered species list.
02:12Scott Huang and Sunny Chi for Taiwan Plus.