TYUMEN, October 31. /TASS/. A pepper spray to deter bears has been developed in the Tyumen Region, west Siberia, the spray's producer said on Friday.

The company said this is the first-ever deterrent for wild animals available on the Russian market.

A local biologist told TASS that "the population of bears in the Urals and west Siberia had significantly grown due to reduced hunting." He said that bears have started feeding on garbage dumps and even attacking people.

According to the Urals wildlife department, more than 4,000 brown bears currently inhabit local forests. "The predators have been enjoying favourable climate conditions in the past four years. There is no threat to the brown bear population decline at the moment," the department said.