NJ Black Bear Hunt cancellation and what it forshadows

Over at The Bitch Girls was a posting of an article by NJ State Senator Robert E. Littell called The Dissolution of Sound Wildlife Management: When Politics Trumps Science. I strongly suggest you go read it. Senator Littell was one of the saner and more honest state senators in New Jersey. But then, he came from the rural west-northwest portions of the state and had an R next to his name.

Senator Littell decries the use of politics in place of science when it comes to managing wildlife and undercutting hunting in this most very diverse of states. He rightly points out that a court decision to halt the 2007 black bear hunt will embolden Governor Corzine and his cronies to essentially do away with all hunters, fishermen and farmers on the NJ Game Council and replace them with anti-hunting and fishing persons more inclined to abandon the management plans of NJ Fish and Wildlife to the detriment of all and eventual stop of all hunting in the state. In his article he also mentions that the DEP is spending an extra $850,000 to assist in implementing non-lethal black bear management policies, monies that come primarily from fishing and hunting licenses and excise taxes.

In the discussion in the comments, one commenter, name of Jadegold, claimed someone, I’m not sure who, was spouting bad science; that the numbers were skewed. She (I’m assuming “Jade” is the tag of a female) said there were only 500 bears in NJ and their conflict with humans was triggered by our encroaching upon their (the bears') habitat.

Well a few moments of research on the NJDEP web pages brought me to these facts: 328 black bears were killed in the 2003 hunt and 298 bears were killed during the 2005 NJ hunt. The hunt itself took place only in the northwest portion of the state (north of I-78 and west of I-287).

To suggest that there are only “500 bears in New Jersey” is laughable.
A conservative estimate of 1490 bears prior to the 2003 hunt can be found on page 15 of NJDEP’s Black Bear in New Jersey - Status Report 2004 (a pdf file).

Jade claims she is never wrong, that is a “gift.” Sorry to spoil your present there Jade.