DNR To Hunters: Avoid Shooting Radio-Collared Bears
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Minnesota's bear hunting season starts next week, and the state's Department of Natural Resources is asking hunters to avoid shooting radio-collared research bears.
The season officially starts on Tuesday, Sept. 1, and DNR officials said the bears being monitored for research are marked with colorful ear tags. The collars have global positioning units that collect and store information that DNR researchers can download when they visit the bears in their dens.
DNR officials said they are monitoring around 20 radio-collared bears. Most of them are in northwestern Minnesota near the Thief Lake Wildlife Management Area and the Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge. There also some radio-collared bears in and around Camp Ripley, north of Grand Rapids and near the Cloquet Forestry Station.
Officials say taking a radio-collared bear is legal because in some situations, hunters may not be able to see the collar or ear tags. DNR officials are asking for hunters in those areas to be extra careful and avoid taking the bears.