Press Release from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife:

AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine’s bear season begins on Monday, August 27 throughout the state of Maine, and youth hunters get their own day this Saturday, August 25.

“Bear hunters should have a good early season as natural foods seem to be in shorter supply this summer, particularly up north and Downeast as bears are on the move and actively looking for food,” said Randy Cross, bear field crew leader for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Maine’s black bear population is closely monitored by Department biologists through one of the most extensive, longest-running biological studies in the U.S. The study began in 1975 and continues today. Over nearly 40 years, Department biologists have captured and tracked over 3,000 bears to determine the health and condition of Maine’s bears and estimate how many cubs are born each year.

 “Over those forty years, it’s very clear that during years with poor natural food production of nuts and berries, bears are moving more seeking out other food sources, and hunters are more successful,” said Cross.

Maine’s bear season is divided into three segments, as hunters can hunt with bait from August 27 to September 22, hunters can hunt with dogs from September 10 to October 26, and hunters can still hunt or stalk bear from August 27 to November 24.  Maine has one of the longest bear seasons in the country since Maine has one of the largest bear population estimated at over 36,000 animals. In addition to a season that starts in August and ends after Thanksgiving, Maine allows hunters to take two bears, one by hunting and one by trapping.

In 2017, hunters harvested approximately 2,900 bears during the three-month season. In 2016, numbers were similar with hunters taking 2,859 bears.

Even with the lengthy bear season, only about 25% of all bear hunters are successful. By contrast, 73% of moose hunters were successful last year, turkey hunters enjoy success rates between 30-35% and deer hunters in Maine are successful 14-18% of the time.

Young hunters will once again get their own day on Saturday, August 25. Youth hunters who have a junior hunting license can hunt bear with a firearm, bow, or crossbow on this day.  Youth hunters may hunt bear with the use of bait, or still hunt; however the use of dogs during youth hunting day is prohibited.

Youth hunters may hunt only in the presence of an adult supervisor who is at least 18 years of age.  The adult supervisor may not possess a firearm, bow, or crossbow while the youth hunter is participating in the bear hunt; however, the parent, guardian or qualified adult may carry a handgun pursuant to Title 25 M.R.S. SS 2001-A, but the handgun may not be used for the purpose of hunting. Any person who accompanies a junior hunter other than the parent or guardian, must either possess a valid adult hunting license or have successfully completed a hunter education course.

With natural food production down, hunters should have greater success, and in-state research shows that abundance of natural foods is also what drives nuisance bear complaints.  In years when there is a good natural food crop, the numbers of complaints drop. In poor natural food years, nuisance complaints increase. This year, there has been over 450 complaints through mid-August. Maine generally averages 500 nuisance complaints for the year.

Over a span of 40 years, Maine’s bear study has shown that not only does the availability of natural foods drive bear cub survival and bear birth rates, but it also directly influences when bears den for the winter, as well as hunter success rates. In poor natural food years, hunter success is higher than in years when natural food is abundant.

Successful bear hunters are reminded that it is mandatory to submit a tooth from their bear when registering. Tagging agents will provide envelopes and instructions to hunters as to how to remove the tooth. Biologists age the tooth, and the biological data collected help biologists adjust season lengths and bag limits for bears.  In August, hunters can learn the age of the bear they harvested the previous season by visiting https://www.maine.gov/ifw/hunting-trapping/harvest-information.html.

Hunters and trappers must have a bear permit in addition to a big game hunting or trapping license to harvest a bear in Maine.  However, during the deer firearm season, resident hunters can harvest a bear without a bear permit. Bear hunting is most popular and bear populations are the densest in the northern and downeast regions of the state.

AUGUSTA, Maine – Bear hunting season begins on Monday, August 26 at 5:20 a.m. throughout the State of Maine. Last year, over 10,000 hunters purchased permits to hunt bear, with 3,207 bears killed.

Maine’s bear population is one of the largest in the country, and Maine offers bear hunters a three-month bear season and a variety of traditional methods to hunt bear.

Since 2004, Maine’s bear population has increased by over 30% and is estimated at more than 30,000 animals. Bear/human conflicts have also increased in frequency in the past ten years, with the department responding to an average of 500 nuisance bear calls a year.

“Hunting is the Department’s primary tool for managing this thriving bear population,” says Jennifer Vashon, one of the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s bear biologists. “To manage Maine’s bear population at levels desired by a diverse public, Maine allows bear hunters to use several traditional methods over a three-month fall hunting season.”

Over 90% of the bear harvest occurs during the first four weeks of the season when hunters can utilize the traditional methods of hounding and baiting. There is also a two-month trapping season for bear, and hunters with the proper permit can shoot a bear during the deer firearms season.

Even with the lengthy season, only about 30% of all bear hunters hunting with bait or hounds and 20% of bear trappers are successful. By contrast, 79% of moose hunters, 38% of turkey hunters and 14% of deer hunters were successful in 2012.

Maine’s black bear population is closely monitored by Department biologists through one of the most extensive, longest running biological studies in the U.S. The study began in 1975, and continues today. Over the last 38 years, Department biologists have captured and tracked over 3,000 bears to determine the health and condition of Maine’s bears and estimate how many cubs are born each year.

Successful bear hunters are reminded that it is mandatory to submit a tooth from their bear when registering. Tagging agents will provide envelopes and instructions to hunters as to how to remove the tooth. Biologists age the tooth, and the biological data collected help biologists adjust season lengths and bag limits for bears.

Hunters must have a bear permit in addition to a big game hunting license in order to hunt bear in Maine. Bear hunting is most popular in the northern and downeast regions of the state and is a vital part of the local economy. A 2004 study showed that bear hunting contributed over $70 million annually to the Maine economy and supports nearly 900 jobs.

The general hunting season for bear runs from August 26 through November 30. Hunting with bait is allowed from August 26 until September 21. Hunters may hunt with dogs from September 9 to November 1.

The bear season is carefully regulated. Maine Game Wardens will be patrolling the woods of Maine ensuring that bait areas, hunting stands and blinds are labeled properly, and they will be enforcing all other laws pertaining to the hunting of bears.

Views and opinions expressed in this press release are those only of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife

Press Release from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife

The bear hunting season officially starts today in Maine, with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife expecting many hunters to have a successful season due to poor natural food levels for bears.

The Department is also reminding bear hunters that they are required by law to submit a tooth from their harvested bear, which helps to monitor the health of Maine’s black bear population.

Maine’s general black bear hunting season opens today, Monday, Aug. 27 and runs until Nov. 24. The season for hunting black bears with dogs is Sept. 10 to Oct. 26, while hunting with bait is permitted between Aug. 27 and Sept. 22.

This year, hunters also have the ability to take one bear by hunting throughout the season and an additional bear by trapping starting on Sept. 1.

While last year’s bear hunting season numbers show a low harvest of 2,400 bears due to the abundance of natural foods like berries and nut crops, this year should be a different story.

Last fall the success rate for hound and bait hunters was 27 percent combined. This year may be closer to a 40 percent success rate.

Bears have been actively foraging this summer, causing the number of conflicts between bears and humans to be higher than usual in many northeastern states. That includes Maine, where the Warden Service received nearly twice as many bear-related complaints in the first six months of the year compared to the same time period last year.

The increase in bear conflicts is an indication of poor natural food availability for the bears, which should also increase bait interest among bears and lead to more success for hunters using bait.

Because of that, this year’s bear hunting season should be a good one for longtime bear hunters as well as those people who have yet to hunt black bears and want to give it a try.

“During lean falls like this, it is much easier for hunters to establish new baits because bears are searching more diligently for high calorie food sources,” said IFW Biologist Randy Cross. “Many hunters were frustrated with hunting bears last fall when natural foods were plentiful, but this fall should be a different story for many. Some years, the bears win and others the bear hunters win – this year looks like it will be the latter”

This will be the second year that hunters are required to extract a tooth from their harvested bear, which gives the Department information about the age structure of bears in the state.

“Knowing the age of the harvested bears provides a valuable tool for monitoring the health of Maine’s black bear population,” said IFW Biologist Jen Vashon. “Having that information enables the Department to track population trends and determine the effectiveness of our management programs which contributes to a stable bear population.”

Hunters should submit the tooth at their registration station, which will provide instructions for doing so.

During the 2011 hunting season, the Department received teeth from 1,914 bears.

Hunters who submitted a tooth from their bear in 2011 can find out its age by visiting

http://www.maine.gov/ifw/hunting_trapping/hunting/bearTooth2011.htm.

The oldest bear that the Department received a tooth from was a 29-year-old female, while the oldest male bear recorded was 23 years old.

The majority of the bears recorded in 2011 – 74 percent – were between the ages of one and five years old.

Like most hunted populations, older bears make up a smaller proportion of the harvest with just over half of the bears being three years old or older.

At the end of this hunting season, the Department will receive teeth from the check stations and will send the teeth to the lab. The ages of bears harvested during the 2012 season should be posted on the Department’s website next fall.

To find out more about last year’s harvest and bear tooth age reports to get more information on bear hunting in Maine, go to http://www.maine.gov/ifw/hunting_trapping/hunting/bear.htm.