JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMOX) - For the first time ever, Missouri has approved the legal hunting of one of the largest and heaviest wild mammals in the state – black bears.
The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) announces the state’s first black-bear hunting season is slated for this coming fall, Oct. 18–27. The approved regulations limit bear hunting to Missouri residents and restrict bear hunting to designated areas of southern Missouri.
Missouri residents will be able to apply during May for the Oct. 18-27 hunt with permit selection by July 1 through a random drawing of applicants.
Missouri’s estimated 800 (600 – 1000) black bears are found south of the Missouri River, and primarily south of Interstate 44. MDC has established three Bear Management Zones (BMZ) in southern Missouri and will issue annual permit numbers and harvest quotas for each of the three BMZs. Each permit will be for a specific BMZ and may be used on public or private property within the BMZ.
MDC says it will guide bear management in Missouri for the next decade.
“Being able to add this iconic species to the long list of hunting opportunities for Missourians is a testament to the decades of bear research and management by MDC staff,” said MDC Director Sara Parker Pauley. “A limited annual hunting season will help manage the growing number of black bears in the state.”
Learn more about the new hunting season at mdc.mo.gov/bears.
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