Notorious bear ends up in museum

Bruno is shown in the museum stealing honey from bee hives

A wild bear which touched the hearts of Germans by dodging hunters for weeks has gone on display in a Munich museum.

Bruno was the first bear to be spotted in the wild in Germany for 170 years but was finally shot dead in June 2006.

Museum director Michael Apel said it was "unfortunate Bruno was shot" but it was a chance to attract people who otherwise would not come.

The bear is displayed being disturbed by people while stealing honey from bee hives to show his potential danger.

"I think he looks very lively," Mr Apel told the BBC News website as the finishing touches were put to the display at the Museum of Man and Nature.

Taxidermist Dieter Schoen, who spent 1,400 hours stuffing the bear, said the display was "supposed to show Bruno neither as beast nor teddy bear".

'Emotional outbreak'

Bruno had been part of an Italian programme to bring bears back to the Alps but he ventured into Austria and Germany.

The two-year-old bear captured the imagination, inspiring a hunting game on the internet.

Bruno before he was shot

But he began roaming close to villages and once appeared outside a police station at a lakeside resort.

He upset farmers, breaking into bee hives and eating 30 sheep, four rabbits and a guinea pig.

The Italian authorities had initially asked for the return of Bruno's carcass but Bavaria refused.

Conscious of the controversy surrounding his fate, Mr Apel said: "Certainly the emotional outbreak after he was shot resulted in some discussion about whether he should be put on show.

"But we felt we should inform the general public about the management problems. If you want bears to return, you have to consider how to remove him from areas where people live."