A. Species
Scientific name: Ursus americanus
Common name(s): American black bear
Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Least Concern
B. Location of use
Geographic location(s):
- Kentucky
- Tennessee
Country/Region: USA / southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee border
C. Scale of assessment
Scale of assessment: Individual Site
Name/Details of location: Cumberland Plateau physiographic province, part of the southern extent of the Appalachian Highlands
D. Timescale of use
Start Year: 2013
End Year: 2019
E. Information about the use
How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat
Type of use: Extractive
Practice of use: Hunting and/or Trapping of live terrestrial and aerial animals
Lethal or non-lethal: Lethal
Does this use involve take/extraction of: The whole entire organism
Purpose(s) of end use: Food and feed and Collection/display
Motivation of use: Recreational
Is this use legal or illegal?: Legal under national law
F. Information about the Users
Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people and National external
G. Information about the sustainability of use
Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: The study extracted and genotyped DNA from hair samples to construct spatially explicit capture histories, using spatial covariates to model inhomogeneous population densities.
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The study calculates that the mean annual harvest rate in Kentucky from 2013 to 2019 was 5.1% and in Tennessee from 2014 to 2019 was 13.2%. Based on simulations, the hunting seasons reduced mean λ from 1.217 to 1.199, but population growth was rapid despite harvest. Genetic diversity was retained, with similar expected heterozygosity as in the source population. That is, harvesting reduces population growth rate, but that rate remains positive (>1)
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: This study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: Implicitly, the harvest rate of bears is sustainable - indeed the population continues to grow. Tennessee bear hunting licenses for non-residents currently run $214.50 for a 7-day or $305 for an annual. Tennessee has c. 700,000 licenced hunters (all species), paying c. $20,000,000 on licences, before additional expenditure on outfitting, firearms, ammunition, etc. That is, the popular and profitable recreational use can be sustained by the bear population.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: This study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: 700,000 licenced hunters - popular recreation.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: not recorded
Details of assessment carried out: study does not record this
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: study does not record this
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded
Details of assessment carried out: study does not record this
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: study does not record this
Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species
This is a re-established bear population, growing from the translocation of 14 adult female bears in 1996-97. The study shows that population re-establishment can be accomplished with relatively few founders provided they have a high reproductive capacity. This initial rapid growth provides a buffer for later population fluctuations that could result from changes in weather or food that would pose problems for smaller fledgling populations. Such rapid growth also helps overcome the loss of genetic diversity that can occur with relatively few founders.
Record source
Information about the record source: scientific_pub
Date of publication/issue/production: 2022-01-01T00:00:00+0000
Source Reference(s):
https://doi.org/10.1002/jwmg.22298
Date of record entry: 2022-12-02