black bear

The Louisiana black bear will be officially delisted next week. (File photo)

The Louisiana black bear will formally be removed from the national endangered species list Thursday in a ceremony to be attended by U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell.



The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries announced last year that bear populations had recovered enough in the state to make the delisting imminent, but the March 10 ceremony will make it official.



In 2014, two researchers reported findings that the state's previously independent bear populations in the Tensas River Basin and Upper Atchafalaya Basin had begun to intermingle. That was one of the keys to achieving the delisting.

Researchers find Louisiana black bear populations are intermingling Discovery puts population on track for delisting.

As a result of intensive work from the department, including restocking and tracking, Louisiana's black bear population has climbed back from as few as 80 animals in a slice of the forested delta decades ago. Researchers say Louisiana's population today may number as many as 1,000 bears.



Still, hunters aren't likely to get a crack at the animals any time soon. Randy Myers, head of the department's Wildlife Division, said there will certainly be no black-bear season in 2016.



The department has to first determine that the population is sustainable without the endangered species listing, he said.



"A post-delisting monitoring plan that has population demographic monitoring as a focus is required," he said. "Productivity, survival and population growth are key components of the (plan).



"When the data indicates a population capable of sustaining a harvest, then a season could be considered."

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Todd Masson can be reached at tmasson@nola.com or 504.232.3054.

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