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angeluscorpion
01-28-2009, 09:01 PM
Most of you know that black bears are North American typical animals. In Canada, their population is around 450,000. As far as bow hunting these animals, there are a couple of questions you should ask yourself before you embark on this great adventure. The first one would be: What type of bow is suitable for black bears? The answer would be a longbow/compound and it should have a draw weight of ( at least ) 55 pounds at 28 inches; the more, the better.

The second question would be: What arrow should I use? Due to the fact that bears have a very rich cartilage, penetration is very important so what you must use is a heavy arrow which is mounted with a big broadhead. Also, if you have some extra cash, you might consider purchasing carbon arrows which are more efficient and also lighter in comparison with the regular arrows. Choosing the arrow is very important because it needs to be powerful enough in order to perforate the chest which will leave an exit hole even after breaking bones. Speed isn’t very important in comparison with other types of hunting. A word of advice: your arrows should be mount with lively colored fletching.

The third question you should ask yourself is about what type of broadhead you should use for hunting black bears. The broadheads should be as strong as possible and razor sharp so that they will remain in one piece and should be able to penetrate the strong muscles, the layers of fat, lungs and of course, cartilage. Lighter broadheads will only injure the black bear, it won’t kill him so they aren’t recommended. Large hunting heads should be used ( 2,3, 4 blades ) because otherwise your arrow will be blocked by the cartilage or muscles.

Another question could be: Is bow hunting black bears from ground levels dangerous? If you do it on your own it is quite dangerous so it is advisable to hire a guide which will teach you how to safely hunt these animals, otherwise, unpleasant surprises are most likely to happen. The average shooting distance should be from about 18 yards, it depends on your style of hunting basically. Hunting bears from tree stands isn’t risky but don’t do the mistake of leaving the tree stand and start walking in the area because you never know what might happen.

A word of advice: when you are out there purchasing your first bow, be sure to purchase one which is comfortable to use because you will be using it for a long time until you develop your skills; make sure that it isn’t very heavy otherwise you will have problems accommodating with it and you will lose your patience in no time.

All in all, if you ever get tired of hunting black bears using your rifle or other similar weapon or if you don’t like using hi-tech gadgets or you like hunting in the classic style, bow hunting can be the perfect alternative but you should take some things into consideration before making this important step: it is much more difficult and dangerous, you have to skillfully handle the bow and at a same time keep an eye out because these animals can become very aggressive if they feel threatened; precaution should be seriously taken into consideration, otherwise, unpleasant things might happen.

Taken from bearhuntinginfo.com