Bear hunting nears record

CONCORD – Hunters seem likely to have one of the most successful bear-hunting season in New Hampshire history, and after one week of the regular firearm season are having an average season for whitetail deer.

The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said hunters killed an estimated 7,220 deer in New Hampshire in the week since the regular firearms season began Nov. 11, about 8 percent less than last year but comparable to average harvests of recent years, the state has reported.

Also, the state said that 708 bears had been registered at hunting stations in New Hampshire as of Nov. 2. That is 48 percent above the five-year average for this point in the season, and Fish and Game bear biologist Andy Timmins estimates that this year’s bear harvest will be the second-highest in history, behind only the 803 bears killed in 2003.

The bear-hunting season is already closed in most of the state. It remains open in the White Mountains region until Nov. 24.  The firearm season for deer is by far the most popular hunting season in New Hampshire, as it is in most states. The archery deer season began in September and the muzzle-loader season began last month.

The regular firearms deer season runs through Dec. 6 for most of the state except the far north.

Further, several hundred special permits can still be bought for killing an extra antlerless deer in southeast New Hampshire, an area known an Wildlife Management Unit M. These permits are sold on a first-come, first-served basis for $13 each, a limit of one per licensed hunter.

This program was instituted several years ago because of the large number of deer and shortage of hunters in the built-up regions of the state.

Hunting licenses can be purchased online anytime at www.HuntNH.com, from license agents statewide or at Fish and Game headquarters in Concord. The basic New Hampshire hunting license is $22 for residents and $103 for nonresidents. Hunters younger than age 16 do not need a license, but must be accompanied by a licensed adult at least 18 years of age. The state has sold almost 60,000 hunting licenses, a number that has been slowly declining for years.

Of the 708 bears registered by hunters in the state, bait hunters took 370 bears; still hunters/stalkers took 256 bears; and hound hunters had registered 82 bears.

Fish & Game said hunters have been encountering bears “mostly in oak stands where acorns remain available in some locations.” As has happened for several years, a “Hunt for the Hungry” program is being operated by the New Hampshire Food Bank, in which hunters donate game meat to help feed the needy. For more information, visit www.nhfoodbank.org.