The Korean Moon Bear (or Asiatic Black Bear) is a medium sized, sharp-clawed, black-coloured bear with a distinctive white or cream "V" or "moon shaped" marking on its chest. They are omnivores, that is, they consume a great variety of foods including fruit, berries, grasses, seeds, nuts, invertebrates, honey and meat (fish, birds, rodents and other small mammals) although meat makes up only a very small part of their diet.

The bear holds a special position in Korean mythology. Legend has it that Hwan-ung, the son of Hwan-in (who was the God of All and the ruler of Heaven), yearned to live on Earth. His father sent him and 3,000 helpers to rule Earth and provide humans with great happiness. Hwan-ung descended to Mount T'aebaeksan on the border between Manchuria and what is now North Korea. He named the place Shinshi, City of God. Along with his ministers of clouds, rain, and wind, he instituted laws and moral codes and taught the humans various arts, medicine, and agriculture.

A tiger and a bear living in a cave together prayed to become human. Upon hearing their prayers, Hwan-ung called them to him and gave them 20 cloves of garlic and a bunch of mugwort. He said they should only eat this sacred food and remain out of the sunlight for 100 days. The tiger gave up and left the cave. However, the bear remained true and after 21 days was transformed into a beautiful woman.

The bear-woman was very grateful and made offerings to Hwan-ung. However, lacking a companion she soon became sad and prayed for a child. Hwan-ung took her for his wife and soon she gave birth to a handsome son. They named him Tan-gun, meaning "Altar Prince" or sandalwood. He became Korea's first king.

Today in Korea there are only known to be 10 Moon Bears in the wild. These are at Jiri Mountain and are part of a government programme attempting to slow the decline of wild Moon Bears. Unfortunately even these bears are being targeted by poachers as some consumers believe that a whole gall bladder from a wild bear is more potent than bile obtained from farmed bears.

In contrast to the low numbers of bears in the wild, there are currently 1,600 bears held in 110 Korean bear farms. Bear farming in Korea grew during the 1980's in response to the dwindling supply of bear parts obtained from bears hunted in the wild. Since then, the Korean government has struggled to balance the interests of Korean bear farmers with international pressures for environmental conservation.

The Korean government encouraged the import of 400 bears to begin breeding and export programs, but in 1985 banned the importation in response to international criticism. In 1993 South Korea joined CITES and banned the international trade of bear gall. But CITES does not regulate domestic trade in products obtained from captive animals, and the last twenty years have seen a marked increase in bear farming.

The rising number of bears being held captive in Korean bear farms is due to an ever increasing demand for bear bile, a key ingredient in traditional Asian medicines. While the process of "milking" bile from live bears is technically illegal in Korea, it is still believed to be widely practiced. Green Korea reports that 38% of oriental medicine shops in Korea (62 out of 163 shops visited) are secretly selling bear gall bladder and that when shops are generally asked whether they do so they respond with extreme caution.

According to a survey conducted by Green Korea, the majority (87.1%) of Korean people do not agree with bear slaughter for use of gall bladders. And yet the trade continues.

Sources:
www.MoonBears.org
Wikipedia