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BLACK BEAR

During the 2009-10 bear season a total of 2,304 black bears were harvested using archery, muzzleloader, and firearms. This represented an increase of 4.5% over last year's harvest of 2,204 bears.

The Virginia Black Bear Management Plan, a plan representing the bear-related interests and public values of all Virginians, includes objectives for desirable population levels of black bears across Virginia. In order to meet the population objectives and address a bear population that has been steadily increasing at an average rate of approximately 9% per year, hunting opportunities for firearms, muzzleloaders, and archery were all liberalized for the 2009-10 season. Consequently, the increase in harvest was not a surprise.

In 2009-10, bears were harvested in 74 counties, up from 64 counties last season. The top five counties for bears were Rockingham (176), Page (130), Augusta (129), Botetourt (120), and Rockbridge (100). Female bears composed 42% of the total harvest, a number consistent with the 2008-09 harvest in which 40% were females.

Hunters using archery tackle killed 1,017 bears or 44% of the total harvest. In 2008-09, bowhunters harvested 517 bears. An increase in the archery harvest was expected as the statewide bear archery season was expanded by two weeks and mast conditions during the fall of 2009 were generally poor. Archery hunting success for bears fluctuates with mast conditions, increasing during poor mast years and decreasing when acorns are abundant.

Muzzleloader hunting opportunities for bears were expanded during 2009-10 by increasing the season length and opening new areas to muzzleloaders. These season expansions lead to an increase in the muzzleloader bear harvest, with 356 bears killed compared to 95 taken in 2008-09. The muzzleloader harvest was 15% of the total bear harvest for the year.

The total 2009-10 firearms bear season harvest yielded 931 bears, or 40% of the total harvest. This was a decrease from the 2008-09 firearms harvest of 1,592 bears. Both firearms bear hunters who used hounds and those who did not experienced similar declines. Hound hunters accounted for 48% of the firearms bear kill in 2009-10, which was comparable to their 47% of the firearms bear kill for 2008-09.

Hunting conditions and mast availability most certainly contributed to the decline in bears harvested with firearms. When acorn availability is poor (as it was in 2009), bears enter winter dens earlier and become less vulnerable to firearm hunters. Compounding the effects of the poor mast crop, significant snowstorms hit Virginia in mid-December which likely limited hunter activity during the last 2 ½ weeks of the general firearms season, including the holidays which are popular days for hunters to go afield.

Additional analyses of the 2009-10 bear harvest data will help identify the relative influences of season changes, mast conditions, and inclement weather. Historically, bear kills in all seasons have often been characterized by wide annual fluctuations in harvest despite trends in increasing population and harvest.

 

 

 

Page last updated: 03/02/2010