Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game washington spring bear cancelled

I just read that Washington state has cancelled their spring bear season-----5 to 4 vote of the wildlife commissioners.

“Is there a problem officer?”

Osky

Any reasons or logic given for this edict?

I'm just guessing some whiny millennial was worried about cubs getting orphaned.

I lived in WA for a little while, they have the most phouced up F&G dept. Ive ever seen.

Canceled as in just for 2022, or eliminated as in no longer from here on out?

Guess no more:

https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/n...-votes-down-spring-bear-hunt-2022-03-19/

When the generic terms “experts” and “possible threats” are thrown around science and common sense are abandoned.
Minnesota is going that way as well with fewer and fewer tags every year while at the same time the no quota numbers rise and bears are expanding to Iowa and the Dakotas.
40 years plus of bear hunting and I’ve never seen as many as we have here, yet our hunting season as well is in danger.
Very sorry to hear that for you hunters in Washington. At least the expanding grizzly population will have more black bear stew to eat.

Osky

I worry that these type moves will eventually relinquish us to just telling hunting stories to our grandkids instead of taking them.

In 1992 a citizen ballot initiative in Colorado prohibited the hunting of bears from Mar through Aug, and prohibited the use of hounds and baiting for bear hunting. One could still hunt bears with seasons that ran concurrently during the deer and elk seasons in the fall.

The anti hunters (although they denied they were anti hunting) often cited and most effective argument was too many cubs were killed during the spring.

Prior to the initiative spring bear hunters killed on average 4-5 lactating sows during that spring season. CPW figured 1-2 of those sows on average had the cubs die in the den. In other words about 3 sows accompanied by cubs were killed during spring bear season out of an average of 300+ bears killed each spring.

Two-three years after the ballot initiative passed CPW started a September bear season that is draw only (the anti hunters howled in protest). But now we were limited to spot and stalk (or find a dead elk or cow to sit over which is sometimes possible). Because hunters were now reduced to shooting a bear when they see one, instead of being able to see a sow and cub together in the tree or at a bait site (because the cub doesn't get far from momma during the spring nor will most ethical houndsman want to turn their dogs out on a sow with cub because she will tear into the dogs most of the time), September bear hunters kill MORE lactating bears during the September season than they did in the spring bear season.

Just nobody tell the bunny huggers...........

The restrictions on bear hunting will yield spectacular results, the bear population will double or triple in just a few years, and then boys, watch your Columbian Blacktail numbers plummet. California is the blueprint on how to destroy a healthy deer population. We proved it, 40 yrs or so the buck harvest was around 750,000, latest survey 14,000. Can't blame it on bears totally, highway kills are way up as deer move to populated areas to avoid predators, Mountain lion control has been eliminated, they have gone from bounty payments to total hunting ban, EVERY single move Calif F&G has made, has been to the detriment of the deer. And boy did it bring results.

Doesn't matter when you kill the females, they will never reproduce again. That's why spawning season closers don't work in fishing. I'm a big proponent for (TAC) total allowable catch or kill. The biologist will never listen to those who know what is really happening.

This is too bad. There's already an army of Washington license plates here in Idaho, I suppose it will only get more crowded.

On purpose by the way.

Ted just for this year so far. Guess they’ll have another vote in a couple months to permanently shut er down, I’m sure they’ll shut er down permanently.

I would bet my next paycheck on it.

That Army of hunters from Washington didn't stop in Idaho. They're invading Wyoming as well.

Yup.

I quit hunting the home state a looong time ago. I always head East.

No worries tho, in 2 years my better half puts in her retirement papers and we'll head East permanently.

When I lived in Washington state the bear population was already huge. Fuggin bears getting into the trash and harassing kids walking to school, that was in 1986-89. Gotta love them green idiots.

Could you explain your rational more? There is a lot more to wildlife management than just to kill or not to kill the females. Stress levels and their calorie needs different times of the year, not to mention average success rates of hunters factored in and a lot of other factors have a big effect on how season dates, bag limits and other regs are set.

That really has no bearing on this particular situation as the spring closure seems to be political. I doubt anyone would argue that but am curious to hear more about your rational concerning killing the females in general.

Is your complaint more about deer and elk hunters or do you actually have a problem with non resident bear / predator hunters? I wish more non residents would come hunt bear in washington. With the august first opener and high bear populations our fall hunt is an excellent opportunity for non residents thats totally overlooked.
My washington plate will be up in unit 1 idaho this spring and fall but im only hunting bear wolf and lion. As for non resident deer and elk hunters, thats been limited by idfg now.