I agree with both Jakesbeard & bloodtrail's comments. I'm not complaining about the response time from the Division (I'm a volunteer with the WCC & a hunter education instructor myself), just trying to illustrate the point that their staff is being overwhelmed by a bear population gone out of control. Kelsey Burgess (the Division's head bear biologist) is a great guy who works very hard to manage the bears of NJ, but is handicapped by an administration that caves to the pressures brought to bear by the antis.
This bear was in the middle of suburbia, and letting him wander back into the (non-existant) woods here wasn't an option. See for yourself by going to
http://maps.google.com/maps?tab=wl and looking at the satellite hybred map. The bear was located & recovered in the "woods" of Colonia, NJ (between Kimberly & Jordan Rd.s & Inman Ave). Since he was considered to be misplaced and non-agressive, what was at the time refered to as a "catagory 4" bear, it was decided against destroying the bear simply because he wandered outside of what's considered suitable bear habitat.
The right answer would be for the state to stand behind their own biologist's data & allow a bear hunt. Using the license funds for what they were intended for in the first place would allow us to have a bear hunt
AND the kid's fishing derby. Heck, if we had the bear hunts we were supposed to, this bear never would have made it all the way down to Woodbridge Twp. in the fisrt place!
