Pennsylvania hunters kill more than 2,400 bears this year

HARRISBURG (AP) — The Pennsylvania Game Commission says preliminary figures indicate hunters killed more than 2,400 bears across the state this year.

Officials say the rifle season harvest, a five-day period which ended last week, resulted in 2,001 black bears killed. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports this brings the number of bears killed this year up to 2,421 — including early season, archery, and extended season kills.

The largest bear killed this year was 780 pounds, killed by a hunter using a rifle in Forest County. Hunters reported 16 bears killed in Westmoreland County and just two in Allegheny County.

The top two counties for bears killed were Clinton and Lycoming counties.