A Russian hiker was seriously injured in the mountainous west of Tokyo on Sunday morning, raising fears that Japan could be heading for another record year of human-bear encounters.

Police said a bear attacked the man as he was hiking along a forest road near Mount Sanukido, close to the town of Okutama.

The man, who has not been named, sustained severe injuries to his face and arms and was airlifted by helicopter to a hospital in Hachioji city. His injuries were not life-threatening.

The attack has added to rising concern in Japan over bears appearing in places where they had rarely been seen before – from suburban streets and school neighbourhoods to festival venues and shopping areas.

“Bears are clearly expanding their habitats into areas in the vicinity of human residential areas,” said Hifumi Tsuruga, a bear expert at the Hokkaido Research Organisation in Sapporo.