HARRISBURG, PA – No other Pennsylvania hunting season offers such a potentially big payoff as this one.
Last year, hunters harvested 2,920 black bears across Pennsylvania, getting at least one in 58 of the state’s 67 counties and 20 of its 22 Wildlife Management Units (WMUs). They took seven in the early season, 695 in archery season, 541 in the muzzleloader and special firearms seasons, 1,086 in the regular firearms season, and 591 in the extended seasons.
Some were massive, too.
The average female bear checked in by hunters weighed 152 pounds; the average male went 198. But bigger bears – much bigger – showed up in the harvest.
Last year’s largest was a 691-pounder taken in Pike County by Mitchell Jonathan, of Quakertown. But five other hunters got bears exceeding 600 pounds, and each of the top 10 heaviest bears weighed at least 576 pounds.
That’s hardly surprising. Pennsylvania generally produces bears weighing more than 600 pounds every year, and often at least one or two topping 700. Pennsylvania’s even seen seven bears exceeding 800 pounds harvested since 1992, the largest of them an 875-pounder taken in 2010 in Pike County.
“Those are some of the biggest bears you’ll find anywhere in North America,” said Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith. “But that’s just part of what makes Pennsylvania bear hunting so exciting.
“We’ve got lots of bears in lots of places, and a slate of seasons offering all sorts of opportunity throughout the fall, too.”
Bear archery hunting got underway in WMUs 2B, 5C and 5D on Sept. 21, and will run through Nov. 29, including two Sundays, Nov. 17 and 24. In WMU 5B, the season runs from Oct. 5 through Nov. 22, with one Sunday, Nov. 17. Everywhere else in the state, the archery bear season is about to begin, starting Oct. 19 and running through Nov. 9.
The bear muzzleloader and special firearms seasons, the latter for junior and senior hunters and active-duty military and disabled persons permit holders, follows Oct. 24 to 26.
The regular statewide firearms bear season comes in on Nov. 23, continues on Sunday, Nov. 24, and runs through Nov. 26. Finally, the extended bear season – which runs concurrent with portions of the firearms deer season – goes from Nov. 30 to Dec. 7, including Sunday, Dec. 1, in WMUs 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 4C, 4E and 5A, and from Nov. 30 through Dec. 14, including Dec. 1, in WMUs 2B, 5B, 5C and 5D.
That’s all the same as last year, with one exception: the muzzleloader bear season was previously a week, rather than three days. It was shortened to address concerns about how many female bears are harvested in the early seasons.
That doesn’t mean Pennsylvania’s bears are in trouble, though. Melanie Weaver, the Game Commission’s Game Mammals Section Supervisor, estimated the population right now at somewhere around 18,000. That’s up over recent years and close again to a record high.
Still, the odds of any one particular hunter getting a black bear are admittedly long. More than 200,000 people chase Pennsylvania bears each year – no other species except deer puts more hunters in the woods – but fewer than 3% fill their tag.
Hunters who want to join that select group are wise to focus on two things: food and cover. Weaver said that in autumn, bears consume as many calories as possible before denning for the winter, preferably close to thick, gnarly hiding places.
“The best thing that you can do is put yourself in an area that a bear is likely to visit when you are planning your hunt,” Weaver said. “Since gaining weight is important in the fall, look for food sources. But think, too, about places where they might rest, like swamps, mountain laurel, hemlock stands, regenerating clearcuts, riparian thickets and areas with downed trees.”
Hunters should also go into the woods with a plan for how to get a bear out if they harvest one. Even smaller bears can be difficult for one person to handle.
But that’s a good problem to have.
“Regardless of size, any bear harvested in Pennsylvania is something to be excited about,” Smith said.