(The Center Square) — After years on the endangered species list, black bears will once again be hunted in Sportsman’s Paradise.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry made the announcement during a news conference Monday alongside Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Madison Sheahan.
“Black bears were once threatened here in Louisiana, however because of the incredible conservation efforts, the populations has rebounded and resurged,” Landry said. “We now have so many that they are getting in the way of deer hunting… The success has got us to the point where it’s time to harvest.”
This is the second time Louisiana has been able to take an endangered species and bring it to the point that it can be hunted safely. The first was for the American alligator, and Louisiana is the first state to do so with two species.
Black bear hunting season will be from Dec. 7 through Dec. 22. This is the first black bear season since the 1980s when overhunting brought them to a near extinction.
Sheahan said that, while working with private landowners, her department was able to restore millions of acres of habitat and homes for the bear so that its population can increase.
Although the original and major priority is the bear population, it’s not lost on Sheahan that by supporting the bear, the department is also supporting and bringing anticipated opportunities to the sportsman.
“Being able to increase a recreational opportunity today and throughout the next couple weeks as we venture on this black bear season is a historic thing for the state of Louisiana,” Sheahan said.
Sheahan applauded their partnership with the Healing Road Foundation, which provides life changing outdoor experiences for wounded veterans, survivors and their children.
As a part of that partnership, the foundation received the first black bear tag which will be given to a veteran of their organization to go hunt and harvest a black bear.
Ten tags total will be given out for the first season, seven of which will go to the private landowners that allowed for this to happen on their land.
Sheahan said that the department manages about 1500 black bears across the state, and they will decide yearly to raise or drop the tag total based on black bear population recovery goals.
In order to participate, a hunter will be required to go through a black bear hunting training course. This will teach them to understand the bear, to know safety precautions, to know baiting techniques, to know the difference between a male and female bear and how to harvest the bear properly.