Citizen science helps protect Sweden’s brown bears through critical denning period

Media release – 3 February 2026

Sweden’s brown bears are a conservation success story, but their recovery brings new challenges. A ground-breaking citizen science project that has been running in Dalarna county since 2019 shows how volunteers from around the world can help local scientists in bear conservation.

Protecting bears by protecting their dens

After recovering from historic lows of around 100 brown bears hanging on in Sweden in the early 20th century, their numbers increased significantly to almost 3,000 bears recently. As a result of this recovery, Sweden is now allowing hunting of up to 20% of the population each year again. These hunts have resulted in a drop to about 2,400 animals in 2025. The government’s long-term goal is about 1,400 – a number, which conservationists believe is far too low as they also worry about a return to pure trophy hunting. 

Given this situation, and as bears reclaim forest landscapes, understanding where they den and rest has become increasingly important to reduce disturbance, prevent conflict and support long-term survival and conservation.

In late spring, when bears emerge from winter dens and care for young, disturbance to den sites and resting areas can have serious consequences for reproduction and survival. Protecting these hidden locations is one of the most effective ways to reduce human–bear conflict and safeguard Sweden’s growing bear population.

In May 2026, international volunteers will travel to central Sweden again to support this work first-hand, joining Swedish scientists to help locate and document brown bear winter dens and summer day beds as part of a long-running research effort.

The 10-day conservation expedition (25 May–3 June 2026) will take place in the forests and wetlands of Dalarna and is led by award-winning conservation non-profit Biosphere Expeditions. Working in small teams, volunteers will survey remote terrain to identify den sites while bears are not present, guided by GPS collar location data used to minimise disturbance.

Working hand-in-hand with local scientists and projects to protect bears

Accurate den data is critical. Many den and resting sites remain undocumented, leaving them vulnerable to accidental disturbance from forestry operations, infrastructure development and outdoor recreation. Mapping these locations helps researchers and land managers better protect sensitive habitats and reduce the likelihood of encounters between bears and people.

Since 2019, the expedition has formed an important data-collection component of the Scandinavian Brown Bear Research Project, contributing substantial den and scat data over a short but intensive annual field period and supporting one of the world’s longest-running brown bear studies.

‘Knowing where bears den and rest is essential for effective conservation’, says Dr Matthias Hammer, founder and executive director of Biosphere Expeditions. ‘Accurate den data help protect breeding sites and reduces the likelihood of conflict between people and bears’.

Dr. Andrea Friebe, the expedition scientist, agrees: ‘Every year we need people who are interested in volunteering with animals to help us with our field work such as mapping bear dens, finding bear day beds and scats. Also, because we now lose so many bears to the hunts each year, we have started capturing them on camera traps. The more citizen scientists we have to help with all this, the better we can protect the brown bears in Sweden, so we are very happy when people support us with our research and conservation work here in Sweden’.

The expedition is open to adults of all ages with a reasonable level of fitness. No scientific background is required. Teams are limited to 12 participants and are based in central Sweden, assembling in Mora before travelling to the research area.

ENDS

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NOTES TO EDITORS

Media contact: Dr. Matthias Hammer, m.hammer@biosphere-expeditions.org

The next Sweden Bears citizen science expeditions run from 23 May to 3 June 2026. Further information on the Biosphere Expeditions website.

Biosphere Expeditions is a wildlife conservation non-profit first and foremost, driven by science and citizen scientist. Our planet is in crisis, with nature under attack like never before. We believe everyone has the power to change this. We are mindful of nature and empower people through citizen science and hands-on wildlife conservation. We are a non-profit, visionary, award-winning and ethical conservation organisation. We are a member of the IUCN, the UN’s Environment Programme and the European Citizen Science Association. Working hand-in-hand with local biologists and communities since 1999, we champion change and protect nature. And we succeed – the creation of protected areas on four continents is just one example of our many achievements.

Citizen science is defined as “public participation in scientific research”. It is an important vehicle for democratising science and promoting the goal of universal and equitable access to scientific data and information. In addition, data generated by citizen science groups have become an increasingly important source for scientists, applied users and those pursuing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In nature conservation in particular, international citizen science has become increasingly important as a duel stream of data and funding.

RESOURCES

Online press pack with image library, press releases & news, press trip information, etc.

Full list of forthcoming expeditions (press trip offers available 4-8 weeks in advance).

Annual Biosphere Expeditions Magazines  with stories from the field, achievements, etc.

These and other expedition pictures in HD. Captions on request.