Over 50 Sheep die after bear attack in Bulgaria

SOFIA, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- As many as 54 sheep have died after a brown bear attack in a farm in the Rhodope Mountain in Bulgaria, the authorities said Friday.

The incident occurred on the night of Thursday to Friday in a farm in the village of Malevo, 200 km southeast of Sofia, the Regional Inspectorate of Environment and Water (RIEW) said in a statement on its website.

Inspectors found that a herd of 155 sheep was left to spend the night in the courtyard of the farm. During the attack, the bear killed one sheep, injured two others, and 53 suffocated while trying to hide in the farm's barn, the statement said.

The brown bear is a protected species in Bulgaria. According to RIEW reports, brown bears have killed at least seven sheep and one cow in the region since the beginning of the year.