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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Bear harvest continues to run behind last season

Posted 10/5/22

REGIONAL— Hunters in Minnesota had registered 1,864 bears through Monday, Sept. 26, with only a relative handful of additional registrations expected by the time the season ends on Oct. 16. If …

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Bear harvest continues to run behind last season

Posted

REGIONAL— Hunters in Minnesota had registered 1,864 bears through Monday, Sept. 26, with only a relative handful of additional registrations expected by the time the season ends on Oct. 16. If so, that would cut the state’s bear harvest by about a third over last year, when drought conditions allowed for significantly-above-average hunter success.
“It still looks like we’ll be around 2,000 bears for the season,” said Jessica Holmes, Tower area wildlife manager with the Department of Natural Resources.
Total bear registrations locally include 174 bears (69 percent male) in permit area 31, while hunters have registered 160 bears (61 percent male) in permit area 25. This year’s lower take of female bears, combined with the abundance of wild foods this year, should help ensure a heftier cub crop than usual next spring. That could help the DNR make progress on its goal to increase bear numbers in the state.