If you want to hunt black bears in Maryland this year, you have until late August to submit your application to participate in the 2021 black bear hunt lottery, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (via Maryland.gov).
According to the website, hunters with a valid DNR ID can “apply for the lottery online or at the more than 250 hunting and fishing license agents across the state.” All entries and the $15 application fee must be received no later that 11:59pm on Aug. 31, 2021, to be eligible for the lottery drawing on Sept. 3.
The 950 winners will then be permitted to hunt black bears “in Allegany, Frederick, Garrett, and Washington counties” during Oct. 25-29. The lottery and hunt, now entering it’s 18th season, is “management tool used to slow” used to curb the black bear population and to decrease the number of black bears from entering populated areas such as cities or suburbs.
Wildlife and Heritage Service Director Paul Peditto claims that the state’s “closely regulated, sustainable black bear hunt has been helping us achieve our management goal of limiting the growth of our bear population, while ensuring a secure and sustainable future for this remarkable species.”
