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jersey joe
12-07-2011, 12:51
The week long bear hunt is underway in northern NJ. Through 2 days 309 bears have been killed.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/12/nj_bear_hunt_rainy_conditions.html

coach lou
12-07-2011, 13:16
What is the take on this hunt, let's hear it. I've walked in Glacier, Jellystone, Maine and the ADKs, SEEN bear but haven't had too much trouble. The reports are 3,500 black bear in North & West NJ, seems like a lot of bear for that area.

Newb
12-07-2011, 13:32
Thinning them will help them. It's necessary to keep them healthy.

Hoofit
12-07-2011, 13:34
Better walk fast through New Jersey......and wear something orange.
They may take revenge on people killing their little 'uns...
And who could blame them...

coach lou
12-07-2011, 13:39
Thinning them will help them. It's necessary to keep them healthy.
Agreed, 100%

jersey joe
12-07-2011, 13:40
What is the take on this hunt, let's hear it. I've walked in Glacier, Jellystone, Maine and the ADKs, SEEN bear but haven't had too much trouble. The reports are 3,500 black bear in North & West NJ, seems like a lot of bear for that area.
I live in Northern NJ and the area I live historically didn't have very many bear sightings. Now we have bear going through our garbage nightly.
So, yeah, the bear population is much bigger than it was and moving further east and west into populated areas.

jersey joe
12-08-2011, 09:47
After three days, 326 bears have been killed.

Newb
12-09-2011, 12:52
After three days, 326 bears have been killed.

Wow, there must be a dense population if that many can be found in 3 days.

jersey joe
12-09-2011, 13:15
They killed 43 bruins on Thursday, bringing the hunt's total to 369.
2 Days left.
592 in 2010.

Sailing_Faith
12-09-2011, 13:20
Better walk fast through New Jersey......and wear something orange.
They may take revenge on people killing their little 'uns...
And who could blame them...

The 'gang mentality' that fosters the cycle of violence is terrible...

When will the madness end? Bears vs Humans = worse thing since the "Jets vs the Sharks"!

http://scribblers.us/nhtj/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/WestSideStory2.jpg

lostinfflood
12-10-2011, 07:11
People like Jersey Joe are part of the problem. I live in NJ bear country and have no problems. I keep my garbage in the garage so the bears can't go through it. Put it in a sealed garbage can the morning the of the collection. A little bit of common sense goes a long way. If they find a reliable source of food, "going through our garbage nightly" of course they are going to be a problem. Give me the numbers of how many of the nuisance bears were actually killed by the hunt. Also, using common sense on the trail, like putting your pack in the trees at night will avoid problem. They are magnifcant animals and a treat to see in the wild.

atmilkman
12-10-2011, 08:30
I was in Florida when they brought back gator hunting and I was in Montana when the brought back buffalo hunting. Both by the lottery system. We can only hope and trust that the wildlife management people know what the are doing and we and the animals are in their best interest where all can benefit. By the way the numbers show what the eastern whitetail population was back in the 30's and what it is today I think they are doing a pretty fair job. In Alabama they ain't as bad as mosquitoes but we sure got a bunch of them now. Hopefully that's what's going on with the Jersey bears.

jersey joe
12-10-2011, 10:00
People like Jersey Joe are part of the problem. I live in NJ bear country and have no problems. I keep my garbage in the garage so the bears can't go through it. Put it in a sealed garbage can the morning the of the collection. A little bit of common sense goes a long way. If they find a reliable source of food, "going through our garbage nightly" of course they are going to be a problem. Give me the numbers of how many of the nuisance bears were actually killed by the hunt. Also, using common sense on the trail, like putting your pack in the trees at night will avoid problem. They are magnifcant animals and a treat to see in the wild.
I'm not sure why i'm 'part of the problem', I personally haven't had a problem with my garbage as I also put it out in the morning, but it is an issue in the area. The park down the street had two garbage cans knocked down and raided this past Monday. Should bear proof garbage cans be part of the solution? Probably, but again, this is a newer issue for my area that hasn't had very many bear sightings historically. The overall point was merely that the bear population is growing and spreading east in Northern NJ.

Lone Wolf
12-10-2011, 10:12
real simple. dwindling habitat and food + reproducing bears with no enemies = a freakin' problem. hence the hunt

MuddyWaters
12-10-2011, 10:37
We can only hope and trust that the wildlife management people know what the are doing and we and the animals are in their best interest where all can benefit. By the way the numbers show what the eastern whitetail population was back in the 30's and what it is today I think they are doing a pretty fair job. In Alabama they ain't as bad as mosquitoes but we sure got a bunch of them now. Hopefully that's what's going on with the Jersey bears.


History shows that wildlife management is pretty poor, and basically only reactionary in nature. Deer are poor to compare to. There are far more deer in the US now than when Columbus discovered the West Indies. Deer thrive on clearcutting and open areas that can get sunlight to produce browse , not mature forest. Hence, the deforestation of the southeastern United States has been actually good for them, while decimating or eliminating totally other species, especially the top predators such as mountain lions and bears. The bottom line is deer get along pretty well with the changes people make to the environment, few other species do.

The real success in managing deer came from re-stocking them in parts of the southern US in early 20th century after they had been literally wiped out. There was a time you could hunt all season and not even see a track in some states.

rjjones
12-10-2011, 15:31
Boy,you cant sum it up any better then Lone Wolf has.When you shrink their habitat you'll have an issue.

lostinfflood
12-10-2011, 18:11
Jersey Joe, I said you were part of the problem in response to your comment " Now we have bear going through our garbage nightly." If one has bears going through their garbage nightly then they are making a garbage resource available to the bruins on a daily basis. This in turn habituates the animal to come back for a steady source of food that they don't really have to work for. In short order the bear loses their fear of humans. This was the inspiration for the slogan "Feed a bear...Kill a bear". Deliberately or inadvertently we can't mak food available to the bears. This is further coupled with the habitat loss we have experienced in NJ Ironically we probably live near each other and both enjoy the outdoors. Have you ever had a dangerous encounter with a Black Bear in NJ? My biggest fear in the woods is the deer tick not a Black Bear. I just feel that this hunt is a trophy hunt and not a means to curtail the population.

Lone Wolf
12-10-2011, 21:18
Jersey Joe, I said you were part of the problem in response to your comment " Now we have bear going through our garbage nightly." If one has bears going through their garbage nightly then they are making a garbage resource available to the bruins on a daily basis. This in turn habituates the animal to come back for a steady source of food that they don't really have to work for. In short order the bear loses their fear of humans. This was the inspiration for the slogan "Feed a bear...Kill a bear". Deliberately or inadvertently we can't mak food available to the bears. This is further coupled with the habitat loss we have experienced in NJ Ironically we probably live near each other and both enjoy the outdoors. Have you ever had a dangerous encounter with a Black Bear in NJ? My biggest fear in the woods is the deer tick not a Black Bear. I just feel that this hunt is a trophy hunt and not a means to curtail the population.you don't "get" it

DapperD
12-10-2011, 23:22
The bear hunt in N.J. is now officially over with 400+ bears taken:http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/12/nj_bear_hunt_is_over_but_battl.html

Blissful
12-11-2011, 00:04
I don't know where all these NJ bears were last fall AT-wise. I saw one only small one on the trail and he ran away. They must be in the towns.

Pedaling Fool
12-15-2011, 15:48
This one seems to have found a good hiding spot http://news.yahoo.com/cable-guy-finds-sleeping-bear-nj-basement-133823975.html

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Sleeping-Black-Bear-Found-in-NJ-Home-Basement-by-Cable-Guy-135614768.html


Cable guy finds sleeping bear in NJ basement

HOPATCONG, N.J. (AP) —

A cable TV repairman got quite a surprise when he walked into the basement of a New Jersey home.
There was a 500-pound bear sound asleep on the floor.

The bear had been spotted wandering in the neighborhood in Hopatcong earlier Wednesday. It's not clear how it got into the home.
The bear ambled out of the house before state Fish and Game officials arrived.

WNBC-TV in New York (http://bit.ly/rVbuTV ) reports the officials fired a tranquilizer dart at the animal, which walked a few blocks to the Missouri Trail before it was knocked out.
Officials plan to relocate the bear.

No one was injured.

Brady
12-15-2011, 16:32
Thinning them will help them. It's necessary to keep them healthy.

i know a few parts of the country that could use a little "thinning" of its human residents... just sayin..

oh, was that wrong?

Old Hiker
12-16-2011, 18:02
i know a few parts of the country that could use a little "thinning" of its human residents... just sayin..

oh, was that wrong?

Depends. Will you keep what you kill?

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSW6oq-8FJQ4gLvrmxlbYl3GywYonUWjDcbNOb62DRa9VnR36fZjiaWhA 0 (http://www.whiteblaze.net/imgres?q=pictures+of+riddick&hl=en&safe=active&sa=X&biw=1024&bih=689&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=EElYbDVWZf4ZjM:&imgrefurl=http://www.scifiscoop.com/news/chronicles-of-riddick-sequel-wont-be-pg-13/&docid=u5zmxHIPK8MFlM&imgurl=http://www.scifiscoop.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/chronicles_of_riddick.jpg&w=769&h=421&ei=W7_rTsOfIJKTtwemhJSVCg&zoom=1)

Tinker
12-16-2011, 18:13
Depends. Will you keep what you kill?

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSW6oq-8FJQ4gLvrmxlbYl3GywYonUWjDcbNOb62DRa9VnR36fZjiaWhA 0 (http://www.whiteblaze.net/imgres?q=pictures+of+riddick&hl=en&safe=active&sa=X&biw=1024&bih=689&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=EElYbDVWZf4ZjM:&imgrefurl=http://www.scifiscoop.com/news/chronicles-of-riddick-sequel-wont-be-pg-13/&docid=u5zmxHIPK8MFlM&imgurl=http://www.scifiscoop.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/chronicles_of_riddick.jpg&w=769&h=421&ei=W7_rTsOfIJKTtwemhJSVCg&zoom=1)




Should be "Will you EAT what you kill?" :-?

jigsaw
12-16-2011, 19:05
Should be "Will you EAT what you kill?" :-?yup just had bear burger in my chili. heading out for some fresh deer meat tommorow.

jersey joe
12-14-2013, 10:26
This week was the 4th year in a row for the NJ bear hunt. 202 bears taken through the first 4 days. 240 total expected by the end of the hunt.
So, in 4 years, that's roughly 1,000 bruins.

NJ was always one of the most likely place to see a bear on your thru-hike. Now those odds go down.
Of course the odds of having your food eaten by a bear go down too.

http://www.nj.com/sussex-county/index.ssf/2013/12/bear_hunt_numbers_are_slightly_behind_last_year_of ficials_say.html

jersey joe
12-16-2013, 20:18
251 total bears killed in the NJ 2013 bear hunt.

Dogwood
12-16-2013, 20:30
I'm pro human plague or human sterilization to solve the "bear problem."

rickb
12-16-2013, 21:44
I'm pro human plague or human sterilization to solve the "bear problem."

Google up the white star tick.

It makes you allergic to bear meat.

jersey joe
01-14-2018, 09:10
409 black bears were killed in NJ in the 2017 bear hunts.

In the past 8 years more than 3,200 bears have been killed.

If you have hiked through NJ and haven't seen any bears in the past few years, fear not, the bear population is about to rise significantly.

NJ's governorship is transitioning from a pro-hunt republican to an anti-hunt democrat.

The DEP estimates the the current 2,500 bear in NJ will double in 4 years without hunting as a management tool.

Yearly bear kill totals in NJ:


2003: 328
2005: 298
2010: 592
2011: 469
2012: 287
2013: 251
2014: 272
2015: 510
2016: 636
2017: 409

Emerson Bigills
01-14-2018, 10:27
Not a hunter, but it has occurred to me that if not for hunters and their desire to keep the backwoods over the past 100 years, much of the land we like to hike in would have been developed long ago. I hope those managing the herds are making the right calls, but I have come to respect the fact that I share the woods with hunters. They have as much right out there as we do, as long as we all follow the rules.

Violent Green
01-14-2018, 11:25
409 black bears were killed in NJ in the 2017 bear hunts.

In the past 8 years more than 3,200 bears have been killed.

If you have hiked through NJ and haven't seen any bears in the past few years, fear not, the bear population is about to rise significantly.

NJ's governorship is transitioning from a pro-hunt republican to an anti-hunt democrat.

The DEP estimates the the current 2,500 bear in NJ will double in 4 years without hunting as a management tool.

Yearly bear kill totals in NJ:


2003: 328
2005: 298
2010: 592
2011: 469
2012: 287
2013: 251
2014: 272
2015: 510
2016: 636
2017: 409


I'm not familiar with this hunt really. Is this hunt merely a bear hunt for hunter recreation or is it to purposely thin the population due to a huge amount of bear-human interaction?

DrL
01-14-2018, 11:45
It's both, and also a source of revenue.

Violent Green
01-14-2018, 12:09
It's both, and also a source of revenue.

Gotcha. There must be a huge amount of bears up there to cull that many and it not destroy the population.

DrL
01-14-2018, 12:21
Gotcha. There must be a huge amount of bears up there to cull that many and it not destroy the population.
No idea. I read somewhere that New Jersey has the highest black bear population per capita, but I can't find that now. Here's a relatively well-written article from Rutger on the topic.

https://njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs/e345/

jersey joe
01-14-2018, 22:14
There are a large number of black bear concentrated in the north west corner of NJ (north of route 80 and west of route 287)

Many blame this in the high availability of garbage as a food source and momma bears having 3,4,and even 5 cubs at a time these days instead of 1 or 2 as was traditionally the case.

As the bear spread further south and east into more populated areas, there are more human encounters.

The Department of Environmental Protection has recommended the hunts as one possible management tool.

jersey joe
11-25-2021, 09:29
So, expect your odds of encountering a bear in NJ to go up over the next few years while hiking though the 72 miles of AT.

Newly re-elected Democratic Governor pledged to end the annual bear hunt.

The 2021 bear hunt, recommended by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection as a population control mechanism, has been cancelled.

It is estimated that since the last full hunt in 2018 until now, the black bear population has risen from 1,500 to 3,100. That number should continue to climb.

2Hobbits
11-27-2021, 15:38
we have the same problem with deer in Virginia. Just too many of them. They need to be culled to keep the rest of the population healthy.

JNI64
11-28-2021, 12:20
So, expect your odds of encountering a bear in NJ to go up over the next few years while hiking though the 72 miles of AT.

Newly re-elected Democratic Governor pledged to end the annual bear hunt.

The 2021 bear hunt, recommended by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection as a population control mechanism, has been cancelled.

It is estimated that since the last full hunt in 2018 until now, the black bear population has risen from 1,500 to 3,100. That number should continue to climb.

Now they're going to kill our planet with all that methane:(

Five Tango
11-29-2021, 14:21
Having a bear hunt is the only fair thing to do for the greater good of the bear population.If their numbers are not controlled it means less available food per bear,no?In that event bears will be forced to become neighborhood pests which likely means they will be removed or terminated at some point.

People on the other hand do have at least some motivation to keep their own numbers in check or at least some of us do.It's called economics.

Here in Georgia our Dept of Natural Resources does a pretty good job managing the deer population but I did see two deer carcasses on a short 30 mile drive this morning which was the first I've seen in quite a while.At one time they were non existent,then became a total traffic hazard,but not so bad now.I can't imagine the damage a traffic collision with a 400 pound bear would cause.