BECKLEY, W.Va. — West Virginia hunters killed 3,012 black bears during the combined black bear hunting season across West Virginia.
The figure is down six percent statewide from the 2015 bear harvest, but is still the second highest harvest ever. It’s also the second time the bear harvest has exceeded 3,000 animals.
“The mast index for all oak species in 2016 increased significantly over 2015 and was above the long-term average,” said Colin Carpenter, leader of the Bear Project at the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. “Historically, an abundance of oak mast makes bears harder to target for archery hunters. Conversely, increased oak mast typically means a higher December firearms harvest because many bears delay entering their dens due to the abundance of food.”
Hunters killed 1,012 bears during the first segment of the 2016 archery season (Sept. 24 – Nov. 19). They took 584 bears with vertical bows and 428 with crossbows. The top five counties were Randolph (82), Fayette (74), Nicholas (60), Greenbrier (55) and Preston (52).
Firearms hunters harvested 2,000 bears during 2016. Hunters took 883 bears in September and October, 349 during the concurrent buck-gun bear season, and 768 during the traditional December season. The top five counties were Pendleton (177), Randolph (167), Pocahontas (161), Nicholas (153) and Hardy (133).
| 2016 WEST VIRGINIA BLACK BEAR HARVEST | |||||
| County | Bow/Crossbow | Sept/Oct Gun | Buck Gun | December | Total |
| Barbour | 45 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 66 |
| Brooke | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hancock | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Harrison | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 18 |
| Marion | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Marshall | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Monongalia | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 |
| Ohio | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Preston | 52 | 41 | 22 | 22 | 137 |
| Taylor | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 18 |
| Tucker | 35 | 37 | 6 | 50 | 128 |
| Wetzel | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Dist. 1 Subtotal | 178 | 98 | 34 | 73 | 383 |
| Berkeley | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Grant | 25 | 31 | 6 | 39 | 101 |
| Hampshire | 17 | 0 | 29 | 4 | 50 |
| Hardy | 26 | 61 | 14 | 58 | 159 |
| Jefferson | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Mineral | 11 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 20 |
| Morgan | 8 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 19 |
| Pendleton | 37 | 100 | 10 | 67 | 214 |
| Dist. 2 Subtotal | 130 | 192 | 75 | 177 | 574 |
| Braxton | 36 | 11 | 4 | 11 | 62 |
| Clay | 9 | 13 | 7 | 16 | 45 |
| Lewis | 13 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 18 |
| Nicholas | 60 | 56 | 31 | 66 | 213 |
| Pocahontas | 23 | 62 | 11 | 88 | 184 |
| Randolph | 82 | 99 | 4 | 64 | 249 |
| Upshur | 14 | 10 | 2 | 6 | 32 |
| Webster | 38 | 50 | 9 | 52 | 149 |
| Dist. 3 Subtotal | 275 | 301 | 73 | 303 | 952 |
| Fayette | 74 | 21 | 39 | 13 | 147 |
| Greenbrier | 55 | 45 | 12 | 73 | 185 |
| McDowell | 49 | 38 | 5 | 16 | 108 |
| Mercer | 33 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 39 |
| Monroe | 24 | 27 | 17 | 29 | 97 |
| Raleigh | 36 | 25 | 9 | 7 | 77 |
| Summers | 26 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 34 |
| Wyoming | 24 | 30 | 1 | 2 | 57 |
| Dist. 4 Subtotal | 321 | 186 | 95 | 142 | 744 |
| Boone | 23 | 28 | 30 | 32 | 113 |
| Cabell | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kanawha | 26 | 38 | 33 | 28 | 125 |
| Lincoln | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Logan | 22 | 26 | 1 | 2 | 51 |
| Mason | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mingo | 13 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 34 |
| Putnam | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wayne | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Dist. 5 Subtotal | 86 | 106 | 64 | 69 | 325 |
| Calhoun | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Doddridge | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Gilmer | 7 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 14 |
| Jackson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pleasants | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ritchie | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Roane | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Tyler | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Wirt | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Wood | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dist. 6 Subtotal | 22 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 34 |
| State Total | 1012 | 883 | 349 | 768 | 3012 |
Bears listed for Logan, McDowell and Wyoming counties as “Buck Gun” are bow or crossbow kills from 11/21 – 12/3.
November 19, 2016. All other bow and crossbow kills have been separated based on the seasons in which they were killed.