Healthy Bear Population Continues to Provide Great Hunting Opportunities in New York State
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced that hunters in New York harvested an estimated 1,685 bears during the 2024 hunting seasons. The 2024 bear harvest was 24 percent higher than 2023 and approximately 13 percent higher than the five- and 10-year averages.
“New York’s healthy bear population continues to provide excellent hunting opportunities,” said DEC Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Jacqueline Lendrum. “Data collected and voluntarily submitted by hunters, taxidermists, and meat processors through the Black Bear Management Cooperator Program allows DEC to monitor trends to ensure the bear population remains robust and hunting traditions continue for the long term.”
Hunters harvested an estimated 657 bears in the Northern Zone and an estimated 1,028 bears in the Southern Zone. Wildlife Management Units (WMUs) within the Catskills and western Adirondacks continued to produce the highest bear harvest densities. In WMUs 3C, 3K, 3M, 4P, 4R, 4W, 4Z, 6C, 6H, and 8Y hunters harvested more than 10 bears per 100 square miles, with hunters taking more than 14 bears per 100 square miles in WMUs 3C and 6C.
Long-term trends in bear harvest density suggest that bear populations have stabilized in both the Northern and Southern Zones following population expansions that contributed to peak bear harvest densities throughout the early 2000s. Widespread drought conditions likely contributed to the elevated bear harvest during the 2024 seasons. During periods of drought, natural food sources for bears can become scarce and bears may travel farther in search of food or congregate around available food sources. This can increase the likelihood that hunters will encounter bears.
Notable Numbers
- 14.4: the number of bears harvested per 100 square miles in WMU 6C, which had the highest bear harvest density of any WMU.
- 564 pounds: the heaviest dressed-weight bear reported to DEC in 2024. The male bear was harvested in the town of Wilton, Saratoga County, WMU 5J.
- 46: the number of cooperating taxidermists and meat processors that assisted with the collection of biological data from harvested bears in 2024.
- 677: the number of harvested bears from which DEC received pre-molar teeth to determine the bear’s age in 2024.
- 21: the age of the oldest bear harvested in 2023 (the most recent year for which age data are available). The bear was harvested in the town Webb, Herkimer County, WMU 5H.
Black bear harvest data are gathered from two main sources: harvest reports required of all successful bear hunters and the physical examination of bears by DEC staff, cooperating taxidermists, and meat processors. Harvest estimates are made by cross-referencing these two data sources and determining the rate at which hunters report their bear harvests in each zone. In fall 2025, DEC will send a commemorative 2024 Black Bear Management Coordinator Patch and a letter confirming each bear’s age to all hunters who reported their bear harvest and submitted a tooth for age analysis.
DEC’s 2024 Bear Harvest Summary report provides tables, figures, and maps detailing the bear harvest around the state. Past harvest summaries are also available on DEC’s website. DEC’s Black Bear Management Plan provides information on how DEC determines black bear population objectives throughout the state.
