Wisconsin bear hunters saw a rebound in harvest levels this year.
The Wisconsin DNR says 4,285 bears were taken during the five-week season that wrapped up October 8th.
That’s up from a below average harvest of 2,922 bears the year before.
"Several factors likely led to this season's increase in harvest," said Randy Johnson, DNR large carnivore specialist.
"In 2023, we saw an incredible amount of acorns and other natural food production. This reduced the effectiveness of baits and translated to a historically low harvest. This year, anecdotes from bear hunters and harvest data suggest less natural food availability than last year. Additionally, last year's low harvest, coupled with bears entering dens in excellent body condition last fall, likely contributed to an increase in the number of bears on the landscape this fall."
A total of 11,501 bear hunting licenses were awarded to hunters through the license lottery system.
Although the number of licenses was reduced slightly this year, hunter success rates were generally higher than expected, leading to meeting or exceeding harvest targets in most management zones.
"On average, we expect to see about half of the total bear harvest within the first five days of the season," Johnson said. "This year, nearly 57% of the total harvest occurred in those first five days, with over 1,000 bears taken on opening day alone. Although the harvest rate returned closer to average during the rest of the season, this strong first week set the stage to meet or exceed harvest targets by season's end."
