Regular black bear season still open as of Tuesday

Courtesy Marla Prell, MT FWP

MILES CITY – The new black bear with hounds spring hunting season in southeastern Montana’s Bear Management Unit 700 will close at one-half hour after sunset on Thursday, April 28, since the quota of two bears has been met.

The regular black bear spring season is still open, with one of the four-bear quota having been harvested as of Tuesday.

As of 2022, it is now lawful to use hounds to train and/or hunt for spring black bears in some areas. See page 4 of the Black Bear Hunting Regulations for more information.

Also new this season is a 48-hour reporting requirement for all black bear harvests, and Region 6 in northeastern Montana has introduced a black bear season. In Region 1 (northwest Montana), successful hunters are required to submit one premolar tooth from any black bear harvested within 10 days of harvest. They are not required to have a harvested bear inspected and tagged by FWP staff. Teeth can be submitted in person or by mail (post-marked within 10 days) with a submission form that’s available at FWP offices or online at https://fwp.mt.gov /hunt/regulations/black-bear.