2012 Maryland Bear Hunting Permit Lottery

Two Ways to Enter

1. ONLINE: http://blackbear.dnr.state.md.us
   
   July 1- August 31, 2012
   (ending 11:59 p.m. on 8/31/2012)
   24 hours a day

2. BY PHONE: 1-888-579-6768
   
   From August 20 - 24, 2012
   9:00 am to 5:30 pm

Deadline: August 31, 2012

Application Process for the 2012 Maryland Bear Hunting Permit

Bear Hunting Permits will be made available through a lottery system. Applications for the Bear Hunting Permits will be accepted online from July 1- August 31, 2012 (24/7) at: http://blackbear.dnr.state.md.us/.  Telephone applications will be accepted from August 20 - 24, 2012 by calling 1-888-579-6768 between the hours of 9am- 5:30pm.

To apply, each applicant must pay a $15 nonrefundable application fee and may only enter once. Applicants must possess a valid Hunter Safety Certificate or have held a hunting license prior to July 1, 1977 or hunted on private property prior to July 1, 1977 to apply. The drawing will be held on Tuesday, September 4, 2012 and all successful applicants will be notified shortly thereafter.

In 2007 DNR implemented a Preference Point System for bear hunting permit applicants. Preference points provide additional entries in future drawings. Applicants receive one additional entry in the random drawing for each year they have been a concurrent applicant.

Applicants must apply each year to retain preference points. If an applicant skips a year, all preference points will be forfeited.

Once an applicant is selected to receive a bear hunting permit in the random drawing, all preference points will be forfeited.

If an applicant is selected in the random drawing, but forfeits the permit, all preference points will be forfeited.

Applicants will not forfeit preference points by participating in the hunt as a Subpermittee or Landowner Subpermittee.

Bear Hunting Permits will be valid anywhere in the designated bear hunting area. Each successful applicant may designate 1 sub-permittee who will be allowed to participate in every aspect of the hunt. If hunting on private land, the permittee may designate the landowner as an additional ‘landowner’ subpermittee who will be restricted to hunting on his/her own land. Only 1 black bear may be harvested by a permittee/subpermittee hunting team.

Black Bear Hunting Regulations

Follow MDBlackBear on Twitter
for updates and real time information during the hunt.
http://twitter.com/mdblackbear

Learn about Black Bear Hunting in Maryland by viewing the video below shot in 2010.