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DEC Announces 2018 Bear Harvest Results

March 11, 2019   08:00 p.m.
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    Press Release from NYS DEC:

    DEC Announces 2018 Bear Harvest Results

    New York Hunters Took 1,295 Black Bears During 2018 Hunting Seasons

    New York State bear hunters took 1,295 black bears during the 2018 hunting
    seasons, state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner
    Basil Seggos announced today.

    "Black bears continue to thrive in New York's exceptional bear habitat and the
    state's vast, accessible public lands offer great opportunities for bear hunting,"
    said Commissioner Seggos. "The black bear hunting season provides valuable
    tools and data for DEC's wildlife managers in their work to maintain healthy bear
    populations across the state."

    Hunters took an estimated 804 black bears in New York's Southern Zone in
    2018, approximately 20 percent fewer than 2017 and the recent five-year
    average. With reduced natural forage for bears this past fall and deep snows in
    mid-November prior to the regular firearms season, many bears went into dens a
    few weeks earlier than normal. As a result, although bear take through the early
    season and bow season was comparable to 2017, take during the regular
    season declined by more than 40 percent from 2017.

    Comparably, hunters took about 45 percent fewer bears during the Northern
    Zone regular season in 2018 than in 2017. Bear take during the early season
    was particularly strong, however, with a nearly three-fold increase over 2017 and
    a 50-percent increase over the five-year average. In total, hunters took an
    estimated 491 bears in the Northern Zone, about 25 percent more than 2017 and
    within the historical average range.







         

    Notable Numbers

  • One bear harvested per 3.2 square miles. By DEC Wildlife Management
    Unit (WMU), the greatest bear harvest density occurred in WMU 3C which
    mainly covers Ulster County and includes portions of Sullivan and Greene
    counties. The town of Kingston in Ulster County (WMU 3C) yielded one
    bear for every 1.5 square miles.
  • 80: the greatest number of bears reported taken on any one day. It
    happened on November 17 - the opening day of the regular firearms season
    in the Southern Zone.
  • 585 pounds: the heaviest dressed weight bear reported to DEC in 2018,
    taken in the town of Shandaken, Ulster County. A 550-pound dressed
    weight bear was reported taken in Marbletown, Ulster County, and six bears
    were reported with dressed weights between 400-500 pounds. Scaled
    weights of dressed bears were submitted for 23 percent of bears taken in
    2018.
  • Six: the number of tagged bears reported in the 2018 harvest. These
    included one bear originally tagged in Pennsylvania and two from New
    Jersey. The remainder were originally tagged in New York for a variety of
    reasons, including research, nuisance response, relocated urban bears, or
    released rehabilitated bears.
  • 767: the number of hunter-killed bears from which DEC collected teeth for
    age analysis in 2018. Hunters who reported their harvest and submitted a
    tooth for age analysis will receive a 2018 Black Bear Management
    Cooperator Patch. Results of the age analysis is expected to be available
    by September 2019.
  • Nine percent: the proportion of bears taken by non-resident hunters.
    Successful non-resident bear hunters hailed from 19 states, the farthest
    being Washington.

    DEC's harvest estimates rely on successful hunters reporting their harvest. For
    more information on game harvest reporting, visit DEC's website.

    2018 Bear Take Summary Report
    A complete summary of the 2018 bear harvest with results and maps by county,
    town, and WMU is available on DEC's website.
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