Excellent bear habitat, vast public lands providing access and a healthy bear population give everyone the opportunity to find bear activity or experience the thrill of seeing a wild bear. The bear population and harvest vary significantly across these three ranges. The Catskill harvest of 112 is below the average of 147 bears for the previous ten years. The Allegany harvest of 50 is well above the average of 34 for the previous ten years, and ties the record for that range. The bear populations in the Allegany and Catskill ranges have been steadily increasing and expanding into new areas.
Black bears can move great distances and young males often disperse the farthest.
As a result, bear populations in neighboring states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania have contributed to the increasing bear population in the Catskill and Allegany ranges. Natural fall food items for bears were generally scarce in 1999. This resulted in the bears being very active for a brief period early in the fall as they searched for additional sources of food. Then their activities quickly ceased as most bears denned early. This resulted in a high percent of the harvest being taken during the early and archery seasons.