The Nevada Dept. of Wildlife is on record saying that the 500 Black Bears that are in the process of continuing to re-wild the state are healthy and are being scientifically managed for long term persistence on the landscape.....Over the past 3 years, Nevada has allowed a bruin hunting season that allows the use of dogs in the hunt(fair chase quite questionable here)...........39 Bears have been killed over this three year period with an annual limit of 20 annually(60 could have been killed adhering to this paradigm since 2011).........Hounding should be done away with but at this point the roughly 13 bears killed annually will not harm the expansion potential for this recovering population(roughly a 3% reduction annually)............Every state that allows a black bear hunt should be as conservative in their quota allotments as Nevada-----A tip of the hat to the Game Commissioner there for paying more than lip service to science based mgt

http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/a3e903eca54941718f52759fa575c26f/NV
--Nevada-Bear-Hunt

Wildlife biologist: Long-term 

viability of Nevada's black 

bear population 

'appears favorable'

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
January 18, 2014 - 9:16 pm EST

A

RENO, Nevada — The
 long-term viability of 
Nevada's black bear 
population "appears
 favorable," a panel 
reviewing the state's
 controversial bear 
hunt has been told. 
Carl Lackey, a bear
 biologist for the 
Nevada Department
 of Wildlife, said the
 bruin population has
 increased from roughly
 450 in 2011 to more 
than 500 now.

Over the same period, 39 bears have been killed by
hunters in Nevada. The annual limit has been set at
20 bears but that has never been reached.

The special Nevada wildlife commission panel met
Friday to review the first three years of the bear hunt
 and plans to meet again on Feb. 21. The review of
the hunt was required under legislation passed by
 the 2013 Legislature.

Wildlife department spokesman Chris Healy said
 the panel will make recommendations about the
hunt to the wildlife commission, which is moving
 ahead with plans to continue it. The committee
 can either recommend changing rules governing
 the hunt or leave them alone, Healy said, but
 the wildlife commission has the ultimate say.
Department staff is recommending the hunt go
 forward under the same rules as last year.

Plans call for the wildlife commission to set
 dates for the hunting season in early February
and to set a quota in May for the number of
bears that can be killed. Hunting seasons and
quotas for other big-game wildlife will be
considered at the same time.
Friday's meeting began with a report from
Lackey on how the bear hunt has gone so far
and how it fits into the department's overall
bear management plan.

Wildlife Commissioner Jack Robb of Reno, a
 member of the bear committee, told the Reno
Gazette-Journal that a limited hunt is likely
justified as long as Nevada's bear population
 is stable and growing.

"From all indications, we do have a healthy
 bear population in the state of Nevada,"
Robb said, adding the department uses a
science-based approach to manage Nevada's
 wildlife.

But committee member Kathryn Bricker,
executive director of NoBearHuntNV,
criticized the wildlife commission for
supporting the hunt despite widespread
opposition by the public.
"The larger question in all this is should
we have a hunt, and that question has
been avoided," she told the Gazette-Journal,
 adding the commission continues to bend
to the desires of hunters.
Bricker called for a ban on the use of dogs
by bear hunters, a proposal rejected by
commissioners last year.