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New Jersey’s first bear hunt in 33 years, prompted by rising numbers of run-ins with humans, ended with hunters taking about 10 percent of the state’s estimated bear population.
The six-day hunt ended Saturday with 328 confirmed kills–209 females and 119 males, said state Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Martin McHugh. Sixteen had been tagged as nuisance bears.
Wildlife officials initially had hoped the state’s bear population, estimated at about 3,200, would be reduced by up to 500 bears, but McHugh said the hunt “went as we expected it would go.”
Some animal-rights groups had challenged the hunt in court. McHugh did not say whether another hunt would be scheduled for next year.
