Bear Harvest
From Andrew Timmins, NH Fish and Game Bear Project Leader
Updated December 14, 2020
The 2020 New Hampshire bear hunting season achieved a new historical high surpassing the previous record harvest of 1,053 bears in 2018. This year’s harvest was 42% above the preceding 5-year average (836 bears) and 33% higher than the 2019 tally (886 bears). The harvest consisted of 608 males and 575 females resulting in an overall harvest sex ratio of 1.1 males per female. Method-specific harvest sex ratios included 1.0 m:f for bait, 0.9 m:f for hound and 1.2 m:f for still hunters. A breakdown by region and method follows.
2020 IN-SEASON BEAR HARVEST TALLY COMPARED TO PREVIOUS 5 YEARS |
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| DATE | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
| TOTAL | 754 | 898 | 587 | 1053 | 886 | 1,183 |
Historical Data
| 2020 NH Black Bear Harvest by Region | ||
| North Region | WMUs | A, B, C2, D1 |
| Total Harvest | 218 bears (124 females, 94 males) | |
| Harvest by method (# bears) | Bait (150), Hound (18), Still (50) | |
| 5-year mean harvest (2015-2019); % change | 151 bears; +44% | |
| White Mountains Region | WMUs | C1, D2, E, F |
| Total Harvest | 362 bears (171 females, 191 males) | |
| Harvest by method (# bears) | Bait (242), Hound (44), Still (76) | |
| 5-year mean harvest (2015-2019); % change | 246 bears; +47% | |
Central Region |
WMUs | G, I1, J1, J2 |
| Total Harvest | 363 bears (172 females, 191 males) | |
| Harvest by method (# bears) | Bait (222), Hound (36), Still (105) | |
| 5-year mean harvest (2015-2019); % change | 276 bears; +32% | |
Southwest-1 Region |
WMUs | H1, I2 |
| Total Harvest | 114 bears (45 females, 69 males) | |
| Harvest by method (# bears) | Bait (65), Hound (15), Still (34) | |
| 5-year mean harvest (2015-2019); % change | 90 bears; +27% | |
Southwest-2 Region |
WMUs | H2, K |
| Total Harvest | 117 bears (60 females, 57 males) | |
| Harvest by method (# bears) | Bait (72), Still (45) | |
| 5-year mean harvest (2015-2019); % change | 68 bears; +72% | |
Southeast Region |
WMUs | L, M |
| Total Harvest | 9 bears (3 females, 6 males) | |
| Harvest by method (# bears) | Bait (5), Still (4) | |
| 5-year mean harvest (2015-2019); % change | 4 bears; +125% | |
Interpretation of harvest data and ages of harvested bears will be complete and available by mid-winter.
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