Pennsylvania Game News - January 2013 - 5

Several changes to the bear hunting season were implemented in 2011: the extended bear season, which had been closed in 2010, was reopened; WMU 3A was added to the extended season; and the general bear season was lengthened to four days. Season expansions implemented the previous year also were kept in place, and as a result a record 162,170 bear licenses were sold during 2011. Yet, license sales only increased a small amount relative to previous years, which suggests that recruitment of additional bear hunters may be stabilizing despite expanding opportunity. Hunters killed a record 4,350 bears, including 304 bears taken in the archery bear season, 3,168 in the general season and 878 in the extended season. Statewide, the harvest rate was 2.2 percent during the archery season, 17.7 percent during the general season, and 21.2 percent in the area open to extending hunting. The average age of harvested bears was 2.4 years for males and 3.5 years for females. Cub production and survival was monitored by visiting the dens of 49 radio-collared bears during February and March. In all, 48 adults, 57 cubs and 30 yearlings were handled and tagged in nine counties. Average number of cubs per litter was 2.7. The sex ratio of cubs was 46 percent female to 54 percent male. As FY11 closed we completed the sixth successful year of the 10-year (2006-2015) wild turkey management plan. Four strategies have been completed (spring season ﬂuorescent orange requirements were changed in 2008; in 2009 the 2-bird spring bag limit was determined to have no effect on the turkey age structure; in 2010 the 4-year tri-state gobbler study was completed (with results published in the Journal of Wildlife Management); and in 2011 a Successful Turkey Hunting course was created). Partnerships (monetary and personnel) become more important each year to assist with accomplishing the plan on schedule, particularly via support from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation (PANWTF), the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) and Pittman-Robertson (P-R) funding. Fall turkey season length continues to be our primary means of managing turkey populations; season lengths vary from a closed season to three weeks, depending on WMU. The fall 2011 turkey harvest was 14,300 birds, which was 10 percent below the 2010 harvest and 36 percent below the previous 5-year average. The number of fall turkey hunters decreased 11 percent from 2010, but was only 3 percent below the previous 5-year average. However, the number of hunter days continues its long-term declining trend. One reason for the addition of the 3-day Thanksgiving turkey hunting season was to encourage more hunting participation. Although such an effect is not yet evident, it should be noted that when new hunting seasons are established it typically takes at least three years before full participation is achieved. Hunting hours during the second half of the 2011 spring gobbler season were extended to allow all-day hunting, providing increased hunting opportunity at a time when risks of hen mortality and nest disturbance are low. Afternoon harvests comprised 5 percent of the total reported harvests for the entire season, and 22 percent of harvests during the all-day portion of the season. The half-day youth turkey hunt on the Saturday prior to the regular season accounted for 6 percent of the total statewide harvest in 2011, demonstrating the popularity and importance of this youth opportunity. The 2011 spring gobbler harvest (based on the Game Take Survey and including youth and second bird harvests) was 34,972. This was a 3 percent increase from the 2010 harvest, but 12 percent below the previous 5-year average. The number of spring turkey hunters in 2011 (234,031) was slightly below 2010 (237,037), but above 2009 (228,903), and three percent higher than the previous 3-year average of 227,484.
JANUARY 2013 5

Pennsylvania Game News - January 2013

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