The return of the long-dormant black bear hunting season kicked off on Saturday, December 10th and will last through Sunday, December 22nd of this year. That said, only a select few hunters are able to get in on the black bear season, as permits are limited. Ten tags were issued to the selected hunters, with each tag allowing for the killing of only one bear. The black bear came under the protection of the Endangered Species Act in 1992. Back then, the population had dwindled close to extinction as a result of habitat destruction and overhunting. Since then, numbers have rebounded and those hunters who were fortunate enough to acquire the proper license can now try their hand at bagging the official state mammal of Louisiana (at least, until December 22nd). John Hanks, Large Carnivore Program Manager for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries adds some background. “The bear was actually listed on the endangered species list in 1992. Part of that was due to hunting and part of that was due to habitat loss,” Hanks says. One interesting piece of trivia Hanks notes is that the term "teddy bear" actually comes about via the regional black bear. “The bear was actually hunted by President Teddy Roosevelt in Mississippi in 1902 and in Louisiana in 1907. In 1902, his guide, Holt Collier, captured a bear with his hands and tied it to a tree. He then got the President and was going to untie the bear to make the hunt seem ‘sporting-like’ and President Roosevelt refused to shoot the bear.
That’s where we got the term Teddy Bear from,” Hanks illustrates.
So, why re-start hunting of the black bear in the first place? Hanks points to recent data that seemed to show a marked rebound in black bear populations across the area. “To make a long story short, over the years the bear was protected and its natural habitat restored and those populations grew and flourished and now we’re where we are today,” Hanks adds.
While many are rejoicing the return of the black bear to its natural habitat, the reason for the hunting licenses is because keeping their numbers in check is still necessary. “While we’re nowhere near historical levels, we don’t necessarily want to be because we have a much greater amount of human beings living in the area than we did 200 years ago,” Hanks goes on to say.
The re-opening of black bear hunting season came via an announcement from Governor Jeff Landry at a press conference alongside hunting enthusiasts and Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries officials. Initially, seven of the hunting tags were given to private land owners who allowed the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission to use their land to repopulate the black bears. Of the remaining tags, one was issued via a public lottery which allowed hunting on state land. One remaining tag was issued via a similar lottery system which allowed for hunting on private property (with the property owner's permission). While there are additional areas fostering growing black bear populations west of Baton Rouge and near the Morgan City/Houma area, those areas are not open for black bear hunting. The agency plans to monitor the bear populations moving forward in order to adjust the number of hunting tags allowed from season to season.
“In 2016, we did a monitoring study … involving lots of capture/mark/recapture, collaring efforts, reproduction and recruitment of the young into the population. We did that even after the bear was de-listed and we’re still doing so even though it’s no longer required. That way we can monitor the population and know what we have and where we are when it comes to black bear numbers,” Hanks adds. Ultimately, those studies led to the re-introduction of the black bear hunting season. Wildlife and Fisheries officials will continue to monitor the program and population to adjust for any future fluctuations.