45 Black Bears in Nevada are to be harvested in the States first sanctioned hunt this coming Falll...............There are betweeen 200 and 300 Black Bears in Nevada....A planned take of 45 animals(16 to 25% of the Bruin population) is not a plan that seems to encourage sustainability, especialy in light of the fact that the bears are principally located around Lake Tahoe and not yet expansive enought in size to have pioneered the full expanse of Nevada......As reported on weeks back, NOBEARHUNTNV.ORG is challenging this hunt based on FWS not having employed proper Science in determining Bear population levels

Opponents appealing Nevada's black bear hunting regs

Written byJeff DeLong

At a glance: Nevada bear hunt plan calls for:

» Tag quota is 45.
» Harvest is limited to a maximum of 20, of which only six can be females.
» Season is from the third Saturday of August to the last Saturday of December.
» Any legal weapons, including rifles and bows, are permitted.
» Hours: One half-hour before sunrise to sunset.
» Dogs are allowed in hunt.
» Unlawful to kill a cub or a sow with a cub.
» Baiting prohibited.
Source: Nevada Department of Wildlife.

Determined to stop Nevada's first black bear hunt in its tracks, organized opponents are appealing a regulation allowing the hunt passed by the Nevada Wildlife Commission last December. Commissioners are tentatively scheduled to consider the appeal when they meet in Reno May 12. The administrative appeal filed by the nonprofit group NoBearHuntNV.org attempts to invalidate the hunt on the basis the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Wildlife Commission failed to meet minimal public noticing and information requirements and failed to consider potential economic impacts to Lake Tahoe businesses. The decision is also being challenged on the grounds it failed to provide an adequate wildlife management justification for the hunt and failed to properly employ science in estimating Nevada's bear population. "The bottom line is there is no reason to hunt these bears," said Christine Schwamberger, a Carson City attorney and organizer for NoBearHuntNV.org.  "There's overwhelming public opposition."
Despite vocal opposition, the Wildlife Commission unanimously approved the hunt Dec. 4, 2010, amid assurances by biologists that the state's bear population can support a limited hunt. Biologists estimate there were an estimated 200 to 300 adult black bears in the Carson Range near Lake Tahoe as of 2008, with additional bears elsewhere in the state.They said Nevada's bear population is believed to be growing at a rate of about 16 percent annually. Shortly before commissioners in early February adopted harvest numbers, season dates and other specifics for the hunt, Commission Chairman Scott Raine said the hunt is "clearly justified on the biological end of it" and described opponents as a "vocal minority" opposed to hunting in general.
A member of the opposition objected to such characterizations. "Actually, many of our group are sportsmen," said Kathryn Bricker of Zephyr Cove. "We are simply a group that represents the public." The planned hunt, Bricker said, represents a "huge change" in policy of protecting Nevada's bears in place for decades designed simply to please a small number of hunters "The hunting of Nevada's bears is not the right thing to do," Bricker said. Schwamberger questions claims by NDOW that the state's bear population is increasing and said her group has heard from a number of Tahoe-area businesses the hunt could impact outdoor recreation at the height of the summer season. In pursuing the hunt, the state's Wildlife Commission is "operating like a private hunting club," Schwamberger said.

During the May hearing on the group's appeal, the commission will hear the challenge by NoBearHuntNV.org, a report from department officials regarding how policy was followed and then render an opinion, said Bryan Stockton, senior deputy attorney general. Comments from members of the general public will not be allowed, he said. The appeal, Stockton said, "is basically challenging the procedure the department and commission went through. The question is did the agency follow the proper procedure? "It's not an appeal of whether they should have done it or not," Stockton said of the vote on the hunt. "It's a question of did they do it right?"