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Last Updated on 16.07.10
Bear hunting (vanatoare de urs). Romania has the highest number and density of brown bears in entire Europe, second only to Russia and is one of the only few countries to allow its hunting. The population is so large, that many brown bears are encountered in suburban areas feeding of waste, yet the big ones are to be encountered solitary in the sub-alpine forests.
According to CIC, the world record Eurasian brown bear trophy skin (687.79 CIC points) was shot in Romania in 1985, and for the skull trophy, Romania has the 2nd place (69.30 points), while the 1st place (70.0 CIC points) was shot in Kamchatka, Russia. Around 250 permits are issued yearly for two bear hunts: fall season (Sep. 15 - Dec. 31) and spring season (Mar. 15 - May 15).
Methods used are spot and stalk, waiting, game drives and under special permit, over bait; anything else, like trapping, shooting from blinds or elevated stand or use of archery are illegal. Recommended are large caliber rifle magnums, with a 7x64 mm minimum necessary. Good populations are in Gurghiu, Vrancea, Fagaras and south-east Carpathians.
In Romanian cynegetical tradition, bear baculum is regarded as unconventional trophy.
