Mark Caron addressed club members Monday.
MEXICO – Rumford Rotary Club members gained a better understanding of Maine’s black bears Monday and state efforts to manage them.
Mark Caron, a wildlife biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in Strong, discussed bears for 45 minutes with about 15 club members in the Mexico Congregational Church.
In light of the November referendum to ban bear hunting with dogs, bait and traps, Caron spoke about the dangers of ballot-box biology.
“A lot of people don’t understand the management of bears, or they have no interest in wildlife and the woods, or bears, and they’re going to be voting on this,” Caron said.
That, he added, was the department’s biggest challenge to address. In addition to providing handouts, Caron stated the department’s position on the referendum.
The Humane Society, he said, and Maine Friends of Animals are laying the groundwork for the statewide referendum to change the way bears are hunted in Maine.
“Maine’s wildlife is a public trust resource, which means no one can own them, and they must be held in trust for all of Maine’s residents,” he said.
Statute mandates the department to:
• Preserve, protect and enhance fish and wildlife resources of Maine.
• Encourage the wise use of these resources.
• Ensure coordinated planning for these resources.
• Provide for effective management of these resources.
But the proposed referendum, if approved, Caron said, would compromise the department’s ability to effectively manage bears by eliminating critical management tools like baiting, hounding and trapping.
“If we lose these management tools, you will not see a population explosion, because bears are not capable of population explosions,” Caron said.
But nuisance bear complaints – of which the department receives about 300 a year – would increase.
Black bears are slow to reach sexual maturity and have a low reproductive potential.
The referendum, he said, would also discourage wise use of the bear resource by eliminating traditional, time-tested harvest methods.
“This referendum questions the department’s ability and credibility to manage Maine’s bear resource,” he said.
Maine’s bear management program, which formally began in 1975, is based on an extensive collection of detailed scientific data, and structured, in-depth public involvement.
There are an estimated 23,000 black bears living in wooded lands covering about 85 percent of Maine.
In 1999, public input established the following management objectives for 2000 through 2015:
• Stabilize the bear population at 23,000 bears through annual hunting and trapping harvests.
• Promote traditional hunting and trapping methods.
• Promote public tolerance of bears in Maine.
If referendum voters force the department to rely solely on the method of stalking bears through the woods to keep the population in check, Caron said that would be bad news.
“Think about it. You just don’t see bears. Their visibility is extremely poor and their hearing is extremely good,” Caron said.
For it to work, the department would have to increase the number of bears allowed to be taken by hunters and lengthen the season.
But even then, there would have to be a lot more hunters going after bear than there are now. And that’s something he doesn’t believe would happen.
“We have a system that works. We know all about the bears. Why throw it out the window?” he asked.
tkarkos@sunjournal.com
Send questions/comments to the editors.
