| This explains the absence of some of our regulars. But don't shoot the bear when he's taking a whiz, tain't sportin' ... |
John Rogalo planned to set out with his 12-year-old son to hunt in Allamuchy Mountain State Park. "It's a chance to harvest a bear," said Rogalo, 47, of Stanhope, a self-employed contractor. "I just view hunting as a family tradition. I started at 10 with my Dad. Now my son will be with me."
| Good luck, John, bring home a bear rug. |
Black bears have rebounded from near extinction in the state but the loss of habitat to development is forcing many of the animals to seek food in populated areas. The hunt, restricted to an area of about 1,600 square miles in the state's northwest corner, is expected to draw thousands of hunters armed with shotguns or old-fashioned muzzle-loading rifles.Hunters and the state say the hunt - which coincides with white-tailed deer season - is necessary, given the bears' increasing incursions into backyards and trash cans. "Most guys will just go deer hunting, but if they see a bear and there's an opportunity, they'll take it," said Frank Dara, chairman of the New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs. "It's basically a conservation thing. It's something that has to be done to control the number of bears."
The state's last bear hunt was in 2003, when 328 were killed. That was the first bear season since 1970, when hunts were suspended because the black bear population had dropped to about 100 animals. Today, the population is estimated at 1,600 to 3,200 and complaints and sightings are up sharply all over the state.