Swamphunter Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Most of you know that I am going black bear hunting with an outiftter this May for the first time. Do have to say though that I have never seen a black bear in the wild. I am looking for two things... 1) Anatomy charts for black bears (for arrow placement) 2) A guide to determine the size of a bear... I am not sure if I will be able to determine the size and weight of an animal that I have yet to see in the wild. In my part of the state there is not many balck bears and its only when I hunt in the Adirondacks that there is a chance really of me seeing one. Up til now, I have still yet to see one. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superguide Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Well a big bear looks short in the leg with short ears and a wide head. If the can bait there you can usually judge them according to the bait barrel. A big bear will scare alot of the other bears off when he comes in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M00N Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Here's a copy of my rinehart placement cards for bears. It's meant for 3D scoring, but you can see the vitals on a bear in two popular positions. After a little googling I also found these two charts on bowhunter safety course websites. As for aging a bear here's a quote from a bowhunting bear camp in Ontario on aging bears and determining gender. [ QUOTE ] Black bears are one of the hardest game animals to judge the size of. They may range from 130 lbs. as a two-year-old, to 600+ lbs. as an adult. Some exceptional bears have weighed in at more than 800 lbs.! Because of their thick coats, and anatomical structure, the judging of size can be a difficult task. Some of the best indicators of size are the ears and legs. Ears stop growing at a young age, while the skull continues to grow. Thus, a bear with ears that appear small compared to the size of the head are generally larger bears. The larger the ears generally the smaller the bear. The front legs also can give a good indication of a bear's size. The bigger boars have not only larger front legs, but also have a larger chest and all around front end than the smaller bears and sows. Sows are normally either equal front to rear, or the back half is larger that the front. Contrary to popular understanding, the distance from the ground to the belly and the height are not always the best indicator of size. Bears are like people, there are tall bears, short bears, fat bears and lean bears. [/ QUOTE ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otdrzmn04 Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart as far as shot placement here is what the outfitter i hunted with told me.. divide the bear crossways and up and down in half...depending on the bears size aim 4" to 10" to the front of where these lines intersect.....the vital area sets farther back than on a deer... and for the size he had 55gal. steel drums for bait, he said if the bears back was at the top line or higher of the drum it was a 400lb or better bear. a bear at the second line would be around 150-250lb depending on the bear he was close with his thoughts, my bear was right at the third line and weighed 300lbs but he was under weight because of a wolf snare that was on his neck...somehow he managed to break the cable but it was still tight enough to cut the skin all the way around his neck except for about 3" [image][/image] [image][/image] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birddog Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart The "Bearing Down" series of videos with Ralph and Vicki C, are great for getting you how to judge size, weight, what the bear will square, etc. Very good info. My biggest recommendation is MAKE SURE that when you take your shot (with bow, I assume????) make sure that the front leg is forward, the shoulder blade on a bear protects the vitals fairly well, if you make sure that the bear is reaching and his front leg that you are shooting behind is forward, you should get a nice, easy kill! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted January 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Yes it is with a bow and thank you guys for the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted January 4, 2007 Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart [ QUOTE ] Yes it is with a bow and thank you guys for the help. [/ QUOTE ] With a bow, one thing to keep in mind is waiting for that front leg to be forward on a bear. They have bones like steal Ken, so you don't want to be hitting leg bones or shoulder bones. Front leg forward and ever so slightly quartering away is perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted January 4, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Yes it is with a bow and thank you guys for the help. [/ QUOTE ] With a bow, one thing to keep in mind is waiting for that front leg to be forward on a bear. They have bones like steal Ken, so you don't want to be hitting leg bones or shoulder bones. Front leg forward and ever so slightly quartering away is perfect. [/ QUOTE ] Thanks everyone!! Hopefully I will have some cool success photos come May! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IowaDeerHunter Posted January 5, 2007 Report Share Posted January 5, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Yep like Buckee said, front leg forward. Good luck! Where are you going to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted January 5, 2007 Report Share Posted January 5, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart This web-site has all the info and pictures of bear anatomy any bear hunter needs Ken. Check it out. http://www.theidahosportsman.com/bear%20anatomy.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted January 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart [ QUOTE ] Yep like Buckee said, front leg forward. Good luck! Where are you going to? [/ QUOTE ] Green Lake Sask! Thanks for the charts guys!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted January 5, 2007 Report Share Posted January 5, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Having that shot planned in your head before hand is an excellent idea. Being prepared mentally before you even see your bear is a plus in your favour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birddog Posted January 10, 2007 Report Share Posted January 10, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Did you find any videos yet? If not, fire me a P.M. and I'll send you a couple to get your blood pumping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted January 11, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart [ QUOTE ] Did you find any videos yet? If not, fire me a P.M. and I'll send you a couple to get your blood pumping. [/ QUOTE ] I record them with my DVR every day I can find them on the hunting channels! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birddog Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Good enough: I have the bearing down series, and a few years ago I had a few buddies come up and do a show with me when I was hunting bears a lot. Got 3 bears that night on video with one taken with a bow from a ground blind. Cool stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Finn Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart I'd recommend you see a couple bear before you shoot one, or the ground shrinkage will be discouraging. I believe most are the same basic height, but you need to see how thick and long the body is...like mentioned, short legs and small looking ears make for a bigger bear. My dad has bear hunted for over 40 years now, and says he still has a hard time field judging them. Big black blobs are tough to judge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squirrelhunter91 Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Hey Swampy.. This pic I'm gonna post isn't an anatomy chart but a pic from our property in WMU 3H here in NY. It's a pic of a black bear that from what we have been told is an old bear. It has a sagging belly and short legs, along with small ears and a big head. Pic isn't of the greatest quality because I had to have it lightened to see the bear. But you can see the bear and the characteristics of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted January 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 Re: Black bear anatomy chart Thanks Joe! I have a pretty good idea what I am looking for, but want to know for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.