Although the exact wording has yet to be developed, signatures are being gathered this fall for a 2014 referendum question on bear hunting. When voters go to the polls this November, they may be asked to give their signature toward this effort, so it’s important to be informed. A similar effort in 2004 failed, but now Mainers for Fair Bear Hunting, a coalition of groups that includes Maine Friends of Animals, the ASPCA and the Humane Society of the U.S., is back, pushing for legislation that would ban trapping, hounding and baiting of Maine’s black bears, which are the three methods by which they are currently hunted.
At first glance, it seems like a no-brainer to support this effort, since most people do not like the thought of our iconic Maine black bear being hunted and shot to death. The results of such a far-reaching ban, however, would have implications that most people haven’t thought of.
Killing an animal is never pretty, whether it’s in the woods or at a slaughterhouse, but we can keep it as humane as possible through certain rules and regulations. That is where this debate should start. MFFBH has argued that all three current methods of bear hunting are inhumane and bears should only be hunted by stalking, as deer are hunted. A look at each method will let voters decide for themselves:
”¢ Hounding: Hunters use trained dogs to track down, chase and “tree” a bear, forcing it to climb a tree to escape, at which point a hunter can determine if the bear is large enough to kill, and without cubs in tow.
Ӣ Baiting: Hunters haul in large piles of human foods to attract bear, wait for them to appear at the site, and shoot those they determine to be large enough and without cubs.
”¢ Trapping: The clamp-style leg trap that cuts into an animal’s leg is banned for bear hunting in Maine. Traps used today are foothold snares that are set to constrict only to a certain size and are the same as used by biologists for data gathering. MFFBH notes that Maine is the only state that still allows trapping for sport. If hunters snare a bear that is too small or has cubs, or if they catch a different animal, they can release it by using a plywood board as a shield and approaching to loosen the snare so the animal can run away.
The coalition also notes that “no one has ever been killed or even seriously injured by a Maine bear,” as they are generally shy animals that avoid humans. Deer, however, are similarly behaved but few would argue that hunting them should be banned. As cute as they both are, these animals can become a nuisance when allowed to grow to unmanageable populations.
Sportsmen’s Alliance of Maine president David Trahan said the Maine black bear population is the highest it’s ever been, at 31,000, and bears have been elevated to a trophy hunt that has been highly regulated since 1969.
He said baiting is by far the most popular method of bear hunting, accounting for 80 percent of hunters’ method, even though it has only a 30 percent success rate. He compared the current hunting regulations to those that work for lobstering: Hunters can attract the animal with bait, observe whether it is a female with cubs or large enough to take, and then make the decision of whether or not to harvest it. The current methods also allow for a clean shot to avoid unnecessary suffering for the bear.
This approach seems to work well for both lobster and bear, allowing the state to keep population levels manageable and sustainable.
The problem with suggesting that Maine follow suit with states such as Colorado, Washington, and Oregon ”“ all of which prohibited baiting and hounding more than 20 years ago ”“ is that our terrain is different. The terrain here is heavily wooded, dense and vast, making the tracking method very difficult for bear hunting.
As well, Trahan noted that while current methods allow a hunter to observe a bear, to check its size and whether it has any cubs, stalking often results in a “shoot while you have a shot” approach. If a hunter shoots to kill upon sight of a bear and then sees cubs or realizes it was too small or young, it’s too late. With a treed, trapped or baited bear, there is time to make that decision.
Do our bear hunting regulations need some reform to continue to help ensure humane methods? Perhaps, but an outright ban on all three of most successful methods of hunting them is not going to be good for bears, the $70 million hunting industry or the state’s residents, in the long term.
The coalition should instead pursue lesser regulations that are not so hostile to Maine’s hunting tradition. Changing the type of bait to discourage these animals from being attracted to human food could be an option, but banning baiting is not a practical approach to bear management.
Bans on hounding and trapping should be considered, however, and would probably meet with little resistance since they are not popular methods. Hounding can lead to injury of the bear or dogs if they come into a confrontation before the bear is treed, and even if a bear is left behind by a hunter it can be so exhausted from the chase that it is put at a disadvantage for feeding and defending itself the rest of that day.
Trapping, though it no longer cuts into a bear’s leg, could also be considered inhumane, since traps need only be checked once every 24 hours and releasing the animals can be risky business. The coalition has also noted that some bears have gone so far as to chew off their own paw to escape the trap.
We believe that baiting is the most humane method of hunting bears, as it does involve effort, time and skill to develop a baiting site, hide oneself while waiting for a bear to come along, and make a clean shot.
Those who are most concerned with minimizing suffering for bears should work with the scientists of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to propose bans to the hounding and trapping methods, to help keep it as clean as possible.
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Today’s editorial was written by Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Kristen by calling 282-1535, ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.
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