the first round of New Jersey's 2024 bear hunt ended on Saturday and already Hunters have killed 18% more black bears than the same time period last year now the Hunt is meant to control the bear population in New Jersey that's risen by 80% since 2018 according to the division of Fish and Wildlife the goal for each annual Hunt is for about 20 to 30% of the total population to be killed or harvested as it's called in these first six days of hunting 392 bears were killed that's compared to last year's October hunt that saw 331 now Hunters were only allowed to use archery for the first 3 days than muzzle loaders for the next three but there's still another round of hunting scheduled for early December when hunters will be allowed to use shotguns but how long that hunt lasts could depend on how many bears are harvested in the first few days the state can shut down the hunt once it reaches its Target 30% and each Hunter is only allowed to harvest one bear per year [Music]