Bear Season FAQs
Harvest Information

General Information

All hunters are reminded to observe the 450-foot "Safety Zone" distance around buildings and playgrounds when firearm hunting and the 150-foot distance when archery hunting (except 450-feet around playgrounds).

There are two segments to the New Jersey black bear hunting season:
Segment A in October, with the first three days for archery only; the final three days for both archery and muzzleloading rifle hunters.
Segment B is for firearms only and is held concurrently with the Six-day Firearm Deer Season in December; the season will be extended the following week if harvest objectives are not met.

• Participants are required to have a Black Bear Hunting Permit for the zone(s) they hunt in and a valid NJ hunting license.
• Five bear hunting zones are open to hunting; hunters are restricted to hunting only in the zone(s) for which they possess a permit.
• Hunters may possess permits for two separate zones. Permits are valid for the entire season (Segments A and B).
• In Segment A (October) use of bow or firearm is dependent on the day a person is hunting. A permit remains valid in Segment B if no bear is harvested with it in Segment A.

The season bag limit is two bears, but only one bear per permit and per segment. Once a harvest is made, that permit is no longer valid. Hunters can initially purchase two permits for two different zones. If a permit is used (i.e. a bear harvested) in Segment A, a second permit for the same (or different) zone may be obtained for Segment B if available.

Permits will be available at licence agents and online in September.

The NJ bear season will close if the harvest rate of bears tagged that year reaches 30%. In the event of a season closure, notification will be on the permit hotline number (609-292-9192), this page and via the NJ Hunting E-mail list. A season closure will become effective 24 hours from the daily legal closing time of the day on which the decision is made and announced.

In the event the bear harvest after Segment B does not meet a minimum of 20% harvest of bears tagged that year, the season will be extended four days during the following week in December.

2020 Regulations Summary (pdf, 900kb)
Detailed information about the 2020 season is found on pages 44-46 in the 2020-21 Hunting and Trapping Digest.

Bear Season Frequently Asked Questions

Bear Shot Placement Guide
Black Bear Hunting Zones Maps and Descriptions

After Harvesting a Bear — Mandatory Bear Check Requirement

Due to COVID-19, the mandatory bear check procedure has changed.

Bear check will NOT be available through the automated system.
Properly licensed hunters who harvest a black bear shall immediately complete and affix to the bear hide the Black Bear Transportation Tag from their Black Bear Hunting Permit. Information to report on the black bear transportation tag shall include:

• Hunter's name, address, Conservation ID number
• Date and time of kill
• Nearest road
• County and municipality of kill and the sex of the black bear.

When field dressing a black bear, leave the sex organs intact, attached to the body. A harvested black bear may be quartered and brought out of the field in sections.

Due to COVID-19, there will be no traditional bear check stations for the 2020 bear hunting season, yet there is still a physical checking requirement.

Successful hunters must call 908-735-0216 for instructions on mandatory check-in no later than 8:00 p.m. during Segment A or by 6:00 p.m. during Segment B. Hunters shall surrender the black bear transportation tag and will be issued a legal possession seal.

2020 HARVEST INFORMATION

Harvest data is posted each morning with the prior day's harvest.
All data is preliminary and subject to revision.
Last updated 8:45 a.m., December 20, 2020.

Bear Hunting Zone	Bears Harvested in Segment A, 2020						Segment A Total	Bears Harvested in Segment B, 2020											Segment B Total	Season Total
	10/12	10/13	10/14	10/15	10/16	10/17		12/7	12/8	12/9	12/10	12/11	12/12		12/16	12/17	12/18	12/19
Zone 1	9	13	15	13	9	10	69	6	11	1	4	0	2		0	0	0	1	25	94
Zone 2	22	28	25	31	5	29	140	9	5	1	3	3	7		0	1	1	2	32	172
Zone 3	27	19	15	9	5	6	81	3	3	0	2	2	0		0	0	0	0	10	91
Zone 4	4	13	11	8	3	5	44	4	0	0	2	1	0		0	0	0	0	7	51
Zone 5	0	0	0	2	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0	2
Total	62	73	66	63	22	50	336	22	19	2	11	6	9		0	1	1	3	74	410
Harvested Bears Tagged This Year	1	7	2	4	0	1	15	0	2	0	1	0	1		0	0	0	0	4	19
Cumulative Harvest Rate*	0.7%	5.7%	7.1%	9.9%	9.9%	10.6%	10.6%	0%	1.4%	1.4%	2.1%	2.1%	2.8%		2.8%	2.8%	2.8%	2.8%	2.8%	13.4%

*Based On 141 Tagged Bears Available for Harvest

Black Bear Harvest by County

County	Bears Harvested in Segment A, 2020						Segment A Total	Bears Harvested in Segment B, 2020											Segment B Total	Season Total
	10/12	10/13	10/14	10/15	10/16	10/17		12/7	12/8	12/9	12/10	12/11	12/12		12/16	12/17	12/18	12/19
Sussex	29	26	28	34	8	27	152	10	10	2	4	3	5		0	1	1	2	38	190
Warren	11	23	17	15	7	16	89	8	6	0	4	2	4		0	0	0	1	25	114
Passaic	3	6	4	4	2	2	21	2	1	0	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	4	25
Morris	17	14	16	8	4	4	63	2	2	0	1	1	0		0	0	0	0	6	69
Bergen	1	1	0	0	0	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0	3
Hunterdon	1	3	1	2	0	0	7	0	0	0	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	1	8
Somerset	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0	1
Mercer	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	62	73	66	63	22	50	336	33	24	2	11	6	9		0	1	1	3	74	410

PREVIOUS SEASONS HARVEST INFORMATION

• 2019 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2018 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2017 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2016 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2015 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2014 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2013 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2012 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2011 Bear Season Harvest Information
• 2010 Black Bear Hunting Season Results
• 2005 Black Bear Hunting Season Results
• 2003 Black Bear Hunting Season Results

RELATED PAGES

Frequently Asked Questions
Comprehensive Black Bear Management Policy
2016 Bear Hunter Survey Results (pdf, 225kb)

Hunting Permit Information
Non-Resident Hunting Information
NJ Hunting License Information