'It makes you sad:' Poacher allegedly kills, dismembers bear for trophy – KATV

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by Andrew Mobley
LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — An alleged poacher has been charged with two citations after a partially dismembered black bear was found dumped in a roadside ditch in Pope County on Sunday.
The bear was discovered just before 10 a.m. on Sunday, missing its head and lower portions of its legs—apparently taken as trophies.
"We got a call from a citizen who noticed the bear on the side of the road obviously notified us and we dispatched our game wardens out and found it and we're able to do a little bit of investigative work on the ground immediately and found the alleged perpetrator and cited that person for two different violations," said Trey Reid, an Arkansas Game and Fish Commission spokesman.
Bear season doesn't begin until September, but poaching aside, it's illegal in Arkansas to allow the edible portions of any big game to go to waste.
The potential penalty for each of the two charges faced by the alleged poacher in this case is $250 to $2,500, a jail sentence of up to 60 days, and potential revocation of hunting privileges.
Reid says it's not often that Game and Fish sees bears poached in Arkansas.
"It's not incredibly common and especially, you know, a situation like this where somebody was just looking for claws and a head or for a trophy or skull or something like that or the teeth it appears," Reid told KATV.
Arkansas' black bear population is between 5,000 to 8,000. Remarkable considering that roughly a century ago, there were only a few dozen left after they were nearly hunted to extinction in the state.
"Then the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission brought in about 250 bears in the 60s and early 70s to repopulate the Ozark and Washita Highlands and you know, that population is grown and it's considered one of the most successful species reintroductions in the history of North American Wildlife Management," Reid said.
"So, there's a lot to be proud about, the rebirth if you will of our bear population in Arkansas, you know, we were once known as the bear state many years ago. And so, it's part of our heritage, part of our cultural heritage. And so, you know, when you see something like this knowing that story about how remarkable the return of black bears has been in Arkansas. It makes you sad. It makes you maybe a little bit mad to see that and hope people won't do that kind of thing."
If you observe poaching, you are asked to report it to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission by calling the agency's tip hotline at 501-255-3475. You can remain anonymous.
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