Kamchatka, Russia. A frigid, overwhelmingly wild peninsula in northeast Eurasia.

Home to trading ports, some winter sports tourism, the largest bears in Eurasia, and a remote platinum mining compound.

And folks, the last two items on that list don't mix well. In July of 2008, 30 enormous bears

came out from the surrounding wilderness, descended upon the platinum mining compound,

killed and ate the security guards on duty, and trapped the rest of the workers

within the facility. The Russian government dispatched snipers to liberate the mine,

but needless to say, the incident had a lasting negative effect on morale in this sub-arctic outpost.

This is not the plot of some sci-fi or fictional short story. This isn't an urban legend.

This is what brown bears, ursus arctus, can do if they get too hungry.

Now, when you look into the details,

this bear uprising was something our species

unintentionally brought upon itself.

We were overfishing the rivers,

and this took away the bear's normal food source,

and these animals started to starve.

And while human beings aren't the preferred item on the menu,

we'll do in a pinch.

Sometimes, if we push too hard on the natural world, it pushes back.

Creating tragedy for all involved.

I'm Mackin. This is Species.

Welcome to the show.

It's a delight to cross off one of the most requested animals in the history of the show today.

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