A Russian village has been "invaded" by a large group of polar bears. 

A total of 56 polar bears had gathered in a one-square-kilometer area near the village of Ryrkaipy in Chukotka on the northeastern tip of Russia. The hungry bears gathered close to residential areas and refuse to leave. 

Residents have made preparations, and canceled all public activities. They had gathered walrus carcasses in the area to try to keep the bears from wandering into the village. 

"We have created a feeding point with walrus carcasses that we gathered along the coast," Tatyana Minenko of the local "Bear Patrol" told news agency RIA Novosti. 

"As long as there is no big freeze, the sea ice will not form and the bears will stay on the coast," she said.  

The village is frequently visited by polar bears, but this year the amount is unusually high. The Russian branch of the World Wildlife Fund said climate change was to blame, as unusually warm temperatures prevented coastal ice from forming. The polar bears cannot hunt without sea ice, so they stay near the village instead, as there are abundant food sources.  

"The number of human and predator encounters in the Arctic is increasing," the WWF said in statement. 

"The main reason is the decline of sea ice area due to the changing climate. In the absence of ice cover, animals are forced to go ashore in search of food."

According to Russian media, the sea ice will take two more weeks to form and the bears will not leave the village until then.  

(Cover photo is a still from the video. Edited by An Qi)

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