Notifications from this discussion will be disabled. 9. Like us on Facebook. U.S. Army Capt. Get quarterly updatesCheck here to sign up! "The skull of Lamere's bear scored 21 10/16 -- a new state record in the Boone and Crockett Club as well as Pope and Young Club records," said Smiley. Because wetlands green up first, wetland grasses and green, leafy plants have been found to be the primary food of the black bear in the spring. Matt Knox, a North Carolina native stationed at Fort Meade,. In the West, black bears are occasionally seen in sub-alpine meadows, but generally prefer the shelter of trees, where they quietly move in and out along the edges of the forest. Indications are that the Black Bear population in Alabama is slowly increasing. This past hunting season, 823 bears were harvested early, and only 91 late. This score easily eclipsed the former hunter killed state record bear which was killed by Raymond Forrest in 1996 and scored 20 4/16. Black bears historically ranged over most of the forested regions of North America, including all Canadian provinces, Alaska, all states in the conterminous United States, and significant portions of northern Mexico (Hall 1981). THE HUNT Caleb Henry, of Fines Creek, poses in the woods right after taking down a 695 . Wisconsin has a growing Black Bear population of between 24,000 and 31,000 animals, mainly in the northern third of the state. But in the last 30 years that population has 10xd, with the latest estimates being at 20,000 or more in the state today. Davenport said the body is currently with Justin Cutler, of Cutlers Creations, a taxidermy service. Thanks to biologists closely monitoring the population and conservation efforts, there are more Black Bears living in Vermont today than there have been for over 200 years. Henry said he sent off the skull measurements to make the record official. They will also reach 4 to 7 feet in length. After the bear leaves, remove whatever attracted him. Bear-hunting . $1 per month for 6 months (you will be billed $6) and then your subscription will renew at standard subscription rates. Because they need dense cover to escape danger, the wary and elusive black bears prefer rough and wooded habitats. The large size of this bear is not all that surprising when you consider Vermonts bear population is double what it was 25 years ago, said Hammond. An estimated 10,000 to 12,000 Black Bears live in Colorado and are found mostly in Central and Western Colorado. By early summer, bears have the opportunity to eat a variety of succulent plants such as the roots of the jack-in-the-pulpit and berries that are beginning to become available. Nope. According to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, The mountainblack bearpopulation ofSouth Carolinaislocated primarily in Oconee, Pickens, Greenville and Spartanburg Counties; the coastal population is found in Georgetown and Horry Counties. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Black bears have several color phases; most in the northeast are all black with a brown or tan muzzle. The bear was nowhere to be seen at first, but he found it 10 yards into the woods in a hole left by a tree that had fallen a while before. Most deer hunters have spent years by now reading about the basics of shed hunting you know, food sources, About 20 cows stopped dead in their tracks and looked at me like I was wearing a bad Halloween costume.