"... while improving public safety by reducing bear encounters with people." REALLY? Please be serious! People who encounter bears usually do so due to their own "carelessness" (read: stupidity!), i.e. accessible bird feeders, accessible trash cans, not stowing food at camp sites, etc. etc. Here's a thought... perhaps we should have open season on those who stupidly (oops...ahem...CARELESSLY) and repeatedly do these types of things! We could actually handle a much larger bear population if people would simply exercise a bit more common sense and not do the things that attract bears in the first place!

Bears 'caught'? Tell it like it is-bears KILLED, and bear CUBS at that...

They don't bother anybody - The deer are the problem - 165/124lb those are babies - Disgusting!

I love how this article uses the terms "hunted, caught, taken, brought in". Any word the author could come up with except KILLED.

TAKE ACTION: Call Governor Christie's office constantly. 609-292-6000
Let his staff know that you do not want bear hunting to continue in New Jersey. Demand non-lethal methods and Bear Smart legislation.

Boooo bear hunters! "Me big man, me kill deer". Seriously? Sparta isn't exactly Wyoming. And you're not a hunter if you can coax the bear over with an apple and donk it on the head. Totally agree with Bruce above - responsible animal management begins with responsible citizens, not gun-toting "hunters" who park their trucks in the Sussex library parking lot.

You people are idiotic. Do you buy and eat meat from the grocery store? (which if you have ever been to a "farm" with chickens or cows you would realize were treated inhumane) I would much rather eat fresh deer or bear meat any day!

You people are morons and should shut your mouths, and maybe do some research before you start going on and on about things you know nothing about. The bear population in the 1000 square mile area is the most densely populated area in ALL OF NORTH AMERICA. More heavily populated then all of Canada, Pennsylvenia and Alaska combined. There are an average of 3 bears per square mile here in northern New Jersey. So do all of us hunters a favor and stay in the city and if you wanna see wild life then go to a zoo and stay out of the woods. These bear hunts are actually a good thing for the enviorment and the bear population. Harvesting some bears will thin the herd and create a healthier habitat, which will make for healthier bears. The same reason why we hunt deer. So if you have a problem with what we do here then stay in the city and dont come out to the woods and polute like all you dam city folk do. Thank you very much a hunter from the woods of northern New Jersey.

God bless hunting season! Going huntin' this week! More meet, more leather!

Will Wilson - 'do us all a favor and stay in the city and if you wanna see wild life then go to a zoo'?? WTF?? That doesn't even make sense. We are not people from the city; we are people from North Jersey. Many of us enjoy the wild animals, including the bears. I hope you feel good about killing defenseless animals living in the environment they are in., You have a sick, twisted perception of what is 'good for the enviorment'.

124 pounds? Nice way to slay a baby you cowards..

Way to kill a baby cub!!! killers!!

I oppose the bear "hunt." Being allowed to bait the bears well in advance of the kill season is really not a hunt. Killing these two that had barely been on their own without their moms hardly qualifies the "hunter" to brag about waiting by the bait. The bears haven't killed anyone in NJ and are hardly threats now if you don't try to attack them. They have neither a pension plan nor a health care plan. All they want to do is find food and be left alone.

Well, Stephanie, I don't eat meat and I am opposed to the "farming" methods for raising the various animals for market. I suppose that you eat deer and bear meat year round.

Will Wilson, what research are we supposed to do? Why should we stay out of the woods? I don't know what research that you have done that I haven't. I know that dfw wants to keep the bear population up enough to use the fright tactic to allow bear hunting licenses to be sold for the department's income. You don't "harvest" any bears; that implies planting and tending the crop; you harvest corn or wheat that you have raised on a plot of land. You kill the bears. If you leave the bears alone, they will stabilize their own population in competition for the available food supply. As noted above, by Bruce, reduce the access to human food to reduce the bears getting into garbage cans, etc.

It's best for the Bears and best for the community. The ratio of bears per square mile is unbelievable to say the least. Disease is the only outcome if the population isn't controlled- natures way of reducing the number. So do the Bears a favor let the hunts continue.

It's not the bears that are the problems its the idiot people that feed then and keep stuff out of there reach.

I live in long valley and have a word for people against bear hunting. Wake up! If we don't hunt bear and dear, we will soon have an invasive species. Look up snakehead on google. If we don't take action, open season on your children. Don't like hunters? GO BACK TO THE CITY. WELCOME TO THE COUNTRY. I don't even hunt but I know this has to be taken care of.