Ky. to have its first legal bear hunt in 100 years

A bear overpopulation has led to what will be the first legal Kentucky bear hunt in 100 years this weekend. "As bears have become a sight-seeing attraction and sometimes a nuisance for state parks in Harlan, Letcher and Pike counties [on the state's mountainous southeastern border], local hunters have been eager to add black bears as a big game animal," Dori Hjalmarson of the Lexington Herald-Leader reports.

"Kentucky is kind of a unique spot in this region of the United States because they historically had not had bears in great numbers. West Virginia, Tennessee, Virginia have had bears for decades," Steven Dobey, bear program manager for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, told Hjalmarson. "Their return has been, in the grand scheme, more recent." Dobey estimates there are about 300 black bears in Letcher, Harlan and Pike counties, the only three open to bear hunting tomorrow.

The hunt won't be easy. Only 10 bears may be taken, and many are holed up in their dens during this time of the year. Snow is expected to limit the number of hunters, and much of the hunting area will be private land that is best known to locals, limiting the number of out-of-town hunters. The use of dogs and bait is also not permitted in the Kentucky hunt, as it is in other states, Hjalmarson notes. (Read more)