Hunters harvested 3,170 Pennsylvania black bears in 2022 seasons

The 2022 bear hunting season harvest numbers are in and hunters managed to take three bears weighing more than 700 pounds and 11 over 600 pounds. They were part of the overall harvest of 3,170 which is down somewhat over the 2021 season when 3,621 bears were taken. 

The 2022 season ranks as the 14 largest of all time. But the best season was in 2019 when 4,653 bears were harvested. 

According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, hunters took bears in 58 of the state’s 67 counties and 22 of its Wildlife Management Units. 

The breakdown over the recent four seasons were that 737 bears were taken in the archery season, 712 in the muzzleloader/special firearms season, 1,051 during the general season, 663 in the extended season and seven in the early season. 

The PGC says license sales for 2022 was 213,639, the third highest ever with 202,93 going to Pennsylvania residents and 9,717 to nonresidents. 

As for big bear, the heaviest taken in 2022 weighed 755 pounds and was shot by Cory Bennett of Toms River, NJ on Oct. 15 with a muzzleloader in Middle Smithfield Township, Monroe County. 
The largest bear ever taken in Pennsylvania was an 875-pounder shot in Pike County in 2010. Since 1992, seven black bears weighing at least 800 pounds have been harvested in the state. 
Other big bruins taken in 2022 include: a 746-pounder taken with a rifle on Nov. 22 in Barrett Township, Monroe County; a 705-pounder shot with a muzzleloader on Oct. 15 also with a muzzleloader, on Oct. 25 in Middle Smithfield Township, Monroe County; a rifle shot 693-pounder on Oct. 20 in Abbott Township, Potter County; a 681-pounder taken in Bradford Township, on Oct. 22 in Clearfield County with a muzzleloader; a 681-pounder taken with bow on Oct.21 in Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County; a 657-pounder shot with a rifle on Oct. 22 in Gallagher Township, Clinton County. A brief example where hunters may want to try for a big bear this season. 

Other productive places hunters may want to try during the upcoming season are in  Tioga that produced he most bears with 187 harvested, with Lycoming County coming in second with 252 bears. This was followed by Bradford and Luzerne with 126 each; Centre County with 122; Potter with 119; Clearfield and Monroe counties with 114 each; and Clinton with 113. 

Here in the Southeast counties there were a total of 131 (156 in 2021) bears taken with Schuylkill registering 65 (61); Dauphin, 27 (54); Lebanon, 14 (8); Northampton, 12 (13); Berks, 11 (12); and Lehigh, 2 (6). 

Up in the Northeast, there were a total of 901 (1,121) from the following: Bradford, 126 (136); Luzerne, 126 (111); Monroe, 114 (95); Pike, 84 (167); Sullivan, 84 (127); Wayne, 81 (120); Carbon, 78 (103); Lackawanna, 51 (62); Wyoming, 50 (66); Susquehanna, 47 (77); Columbia, 46 (36); Northumberland, 10 (16); and Montour, 4 (5).

Within local Wildlife Management Areas, it was WMU 3D, with 344 (426); WMU 4C, 190 (224); and WMU 5C, 8 (10). 

Overall, some county harvest numbers were down while a few were up over the 2021 bear season. The PGC assures that the bear population is stable and will continue to grow some large bears. And that’s one reason close to 10,000 nonresidents want to hunt black bear in the Keystone State. 
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