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October 26, 2004
Maryland Bear Hunt Lasts Only One Day
By DAVID DISHNEAU, Associated Press Writer
State wildlife managers declared Maryland's first black bear hunt in 51 years a success Tuesday even though they stopped it short of their 30-bear objective.
Twenty bears were killed in the one-day hunt, the Department of Natural Resources said. It had been scheduled for six days, but DNR officials halted the hunt Monday night to avoid possibly exceeding the quota.
"I consider it an unqualified success," said Paul Peditto, director of the DNR's Wildlife and Heritage Service. "We stood by our promise to keep this conservative, even more so than the biological limits allowed."
Harry Spiker, the DNR's black bear project manager, said 80 percent of the bears were taken on private land, which indicated the hunt met an objective of targeting animals blamed for about $50,000 worth of damage to crops and property in far western Maryland last year.
Officials said 381 people participated in the hunt in the region where most of the state's estimated 500 black bears live.
"I think it's a success all the way around," said Steven Christian, president of the Maryland Sportsmen's Association.
The largest bear taken was a 496-pound male, one of 11 males killed in the hunt, Spiker said. The smallest was an 84-pound female. Animal-protection advocates, who lobbied against a bear hunt for years in the legislature before finally losing in the courts, were not appeased by the DNR's action limiting the harvest.
"We're certainly glad that the killing has stopped, but the slaughter of yesterday just underscored how inhumane and indiscriminate this trophy hunt was," said Michael Markarian, president of The Fund for Animals. "The hunters were shooting bears at random, not targeting problem bears."
Maryland Bear Hunt Lasts Only One Day
By DAVID DISHNEAU, Associated Press Writer
State wildlife managers declared Maryland's first black bear hunt in 51 years a success Tuesday even though they stopped it short of their 30-bear objective.
Twenty bears were killed in the one-day hunt, the Department of Natural Resources said. It had been scheduled for six days, but DNR officials halted the hunt Monday night to avoid possibly exceeding the quota.
"I consider it an unqualified success," said Paul Peditto, director of the DNR's Wildlife and Heritage Service. "We stood by our promise to keep this conservative, even more so than the biological limits allowed."
Harry Spiker, the DNR's black bear project manager, said 80 percent of the bears were taken on private land, which indicated the hunt met an objective of targeting animals blamed for about $50,000 worth of damage to crops and property in far western Maryland last year.
Officials said 381 people participated in the hunt in the region where most of the state's estimated 500 black bears live.
"I think it's a success all the way around," said Steven Christian, president of the Maryland Sportsmen's Association.
The largest bear taken was a 496-pound male, one of 11 males killed in the hunt, Spiker said. The smallest was an 84-pound female. Animal-protection advocates, who lobbied against a bear hunt for years in the legislature before finally losing in the courts, were not appeased by the DNR's action limiting the harvest.
"We're certainly glad that the killing has stopped, but the slaughter of yesterday just underscored how inhumane and indiscriminate this trophy hunt was," said Michael Markarian, president of The Fund for Animals. "The hunters were shooting bears at random, not targeting problem bears."
