Maine, 2026-27 season year

Maine Bear Season 2026-27

Q: Does Maine have a spring bear season in 2027?

No. Maine holds no spring bear season. MDIFW describes a single fall season framework that opens the last Monday in August and closes the last Saturday in November, and its 2026 table lists nothing in spring. Spring bear seasons are mostly a western pattern, and the national page lists the states that hold one in 2027.

Q: Who publishes guidance on living with bears in Maine?

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, on its page titled Living with Black Bears, which is linked from the agency notice on this page. That page is the agency's own guidance for Maine residents on attractants, encounters and who to call, and its sentence on fall activity is quoted verbatim beside the link, read on September 19, 2026.

Q: Where are the rest of the Maine bear hunting rules?

At Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, whose regulations page is linked on this page. Those rules are legally binding, change annually and vary by zone and land ownership; the permit and tag system, zone maps, methods and reporting requirements are all published there. This page carries the season windows themselves, with the source page and read date attached.

And during the fall, bears shift to seeking out hard mast like acorns and beechnuts in forested areas, and other available soft mast. They consume around 20,000 calories per day during this period of excess eating (referred to as hyperphagia) in preparation for denning again in the winter.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife

General Hunting Season: August 31, 2026 to November 28, 2026. People report black bears in Maine most in June, and 22 percent of all reports fall in September, October and November. Everything below is Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s own words and dates, read on September 19, 2026, beside the record of what people reported.

This page covers the 2026-27 season year. Dates were read from the agency sources linked below, last checked September 19, 2026. Seasons change annually and agencies correct their own pages; confirm against the linked agency page before you hunt.

August 31, 2026 to November 28, 2026

General Hunting Season

published

No season

Archery bear season

no season

No season

Spring bear season

no season

June

Busiest reported month

328 reports on record

Fall activity

When black bears are most active in Maine

MDIFW says black bears are found nearly statewide, most common in northern, northwestern and eastern Maine and less common in the heavily settled southern and central-coastal regions, and puts the population at around 25,000 bears, the largest in the eastern United States.

The bars count research grade American black bear observations people uploaded to iNaturalist for Maine, by calendar month, across every year the platform holds. The busiest month in the record is June, and reports drop below 40 percent of that peak by November. The drop into winter reflects bears denning and fewer people outdoors in equal measure, which is why the agency’s sentences below, not the curve, carry the timing.

328 research grade American black bear observations have been uploaded to iNaturalist for Maine across every year the platform holds, and 22 percent of them fall in the three shaded fall months. The busiest month in the record is June, and reports drop below 40 percent of that peak by November. These are counts of what people reported, so they measure observers as well as bears; they are not a population, not a survey and not a statement about this autumn. See the records on iNaturalist.

Research grade black bear reports uploaded for Maine by year, 2016 to 2025: 6 in 2016 and 52 in 2025. Most of the climb is the platform itself growing, and every species on it shows the same shape, so this is a record of reporting rather than a population trend.

What Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife says

Fall feeding

And during the fall, bears shift to seeking out hard mast like acorns and beechnuts in forested areas, and other available soft mast. They consume around 20,000 calories per day during this period of excess eating (referred to as hyperphagia) in preparation for denning again in the winter.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

Denning

In late fall, cubs enter dens with their mother and enter a state of torpor (lowering their body temperature and slowing their metabolism to conserve energy) and live off of their summer and fall fat reserves. When they emerge from their winter den as yearling bears, they remain with their mother until she goes into estrus in the spring/early summer.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

When conflicts and sightings rise

Our bears are most active between April 1 and November 1. When natural foods are scarce, especially in the spring or dry summers, bears will venture into backyards and fields in search of easily accessible food such as bird feeders, garbage, grills and pet foods.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

A young black bear resting its chin on a bare dead branch in a green hardwood forest, ears forward, looking at the camera — A young black bear on a dead limb in the hardwoods. In the eastern forests the fall feeding season runs on acorns and beechnuts, which is why the agency sentences quoted on these pages talk about hard mast and mast years. Photo: Courtney Celley, USFWS. “Black Bear (20083897724)”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain

Hunting dates

Maine bear seasons, 2026-27

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife dates American black bear seasons under its own names, and each is below under that name with the zone rows exactly as the agency lists them, the source page linked beside each table, and the date it was read.

General Hunting Season

published

General Hunting Season is OPEN now in the All WMDs, through November 28, 2026.

Maine general hunting season, as published by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
All WMDs	August 31, 2026	November 28, 2026

Dates read from Season Dates and Bag Limits, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

Maine's bear season runs 13 weeks statewide, opening the last Monday in August and closing on the last day of the regular firearms season on deer. The bait, dog and trapping windows sit inside it and are listed under other seasons.

Archery bear season

no season

Maine holds no separately dated archery bear season. MDIFW's 2026 season table dates no separate archery bear season. The only dated bear windows are the general season, hunting with bait, hunting with dogs, bear trapping and the youth days. Source: Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Spring bear season

no season

Maine holds no spring bear season. Maine holds no spring bear season. MDIFW describes a single fall season framework that opens the last Monday in August and closes the last Saturday in November, and its 2026 table lists nothing in spring. Source: Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Other Maine bear seasons the agency names

Youth Bear Days

published

Youth Bear Days has closed for the season year; the last segment ended August 29, 2026.

Maine youth bear days, as published by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
All WMDs	August 28, 2026	August 29, 2026

Dates read from Season Dates and Bag Limits, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

Two youth bear days on the Friday and Saturday before the general season opens.

Hunting with Bait

published

Hunting with Bait has closed for the season year; the last segment ended September 26, 2026.

Maine hunting with bait, as published by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
All WMDs	August 31, 2026	September 26, 2026

Dates read from Season Dates and Bag Limits, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

The bait window covers the first four weeks of the general season, as MDIFW's 2026 table dates it.

Bear Trapping

published

Bear Trapping is OPEN now in the All WMDs, through October 31, 2026.

Maine bear trapping, as published by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
All WMDs	September 1, 2026	October 31, 2026

Dates read from Season Dates and Bag Limits, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

MDIFW dates a two month bear trapping window separately from the hunting windows.

Youth Bear Hunting with Dogs Day

published

Youth Bear Hunting with Dogs Day has closed for the season year; the last segment ended September 12, 2026.

Maine youth bear hunting with dogs day, as published by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
All WMDs	September 12, 2026	September 12, 2026	Single day

Dates read from Season Dates and Bag Limits, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

A one day youth window on the Saturday before the hunting with dogs season opens, per MDIFW's 2026 table.

Hunting with Dogs

published

Hunting with Dogs is OPEN now in the All WMDs, through October 30, 2026.

Maine hunting with dogs, as published by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
All WMDs	September 14, 2026	October 30, 2026

Dates read from Season Dates and Bag Limits, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

A six week dog window that starts in the third week of the general season, per MDIFW's 2026 table.

The agency's own season sentence

Maine's 13-week bear season opens the last Monday in August (with a special Youth Hunting Day the Saturday prior) and extends through late November and coincides with the last day of regular firearms season for deer.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

Current Maine regulations

Permit and tag requirements, zone maps, permitted methods, tagging and reporting, and everything else a bear hunter is bound by for Maine are set by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, are legally binding and change annually. Its current regulations page is linked here.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife: current regulations

A black bear track pressed into wet grey mud, five rounded toes in an arc above a broad pad, with a second fainter print beside it — A black bear track in mud in Shenandoah National Park. Tracks, scat, turned over logs and claw marks on smooth beech bark are the sign most people meet in the fall woods, weeks before they meet the bear. Photo: M. Punches, NPS. “Black Bear Track in Mud (44654784885)”, ShenandoahNPS, Public domain

Bear season in other states

Maine deer seasonArchery, firearms, muzzleloader and youth deer windows for 2026-27, under the same sourcing rules.Maine small game seasonPheasant, quail, grouse, rabbit and squirrel openers, read from the same agency.Maine foraging calendarThe acorns, beechnuts and berries the agency names as fall bear food are the same mast a forager follows.

An adult black bear standing on a broken limb high in a hardwood tree above two small cubs, all three looking down — A mother black bear and two cubs of the year in a hardwood tree. The denning sentences quoted on the state pages describe when family groups like this one go to ground, and it moves by weeks between a Gulf Coast winter and a northern one. Photo: Courtney Celley, USFWS. “Black Bear Family (20083894064)”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain

Maine bear season questions

When are black bears most active in Maine in the fall?

In the observation record for Maine, research grade black bear reports peak in June and 22 percent of all 328 reports fall in September, October and November. Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife describes the fall feeding period in its own words, quoted on this page with a link to the page it came from. Reports count people as well as bears, so the shape of the curve is the useful part and the exact numbers are not.

When does bear season open in Maine in 2026-27?

Does Maine have a spring bear season in 2027?

When do black bears go into dens in Maine?

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife describes the denning timing for Maine in the sentence quoted on this page, read on September 19, 2026 from the page linked beside it. In the observation record, reports fall below 40 percent of the June peak by November and reach their low in January. That drop reflects bears denning and fewer people outdoors in equal measure, which is why the agency's sentence, not the curve, is the denning answer.

Are black bear sightings in Maine increasing?

The number of research grade black bear reports uploaded for Maine went from 6 in 2016 to 52 in 2025. Most of that rise is the platform itself growing, since every species on iNaturalist shows the same climb, so the year bars on this page are a record of reporting rather than a population trend. Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife describes when sightings and conflicts rise in Maine in the sentence quoted on this page.

Who publishes guidance on living with bears in Maine?

Where are the rest of the Maine bear hunting rules?

A brown wooden Bear Country sign with a white bear pictogram and a red band, on two posts at the edge of a lodgepole pine campground in low sun — A Bear Country sign at Indian Creek Campground, Yellowstone. The land manager writes the rules on the board, and they change by campground and by season: food storage orders, closed drainages, and whether a soft sided tent is allowed at all. “Bear Country Sign for Indian Creek (14457698423)”, Yellowstone National Park from Yellowstone NP, USA, Public domain

A snow covered track running between pines bent low under heavy snow, with a strip of blue sky above — Midwinter at Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, Maine. This is denning season in the north; each agency's own sentence on when its bears enter and leave their dens is quoted on the state pages, and the month bars show the reports thinning to match. “Winter at Moosehorn (11714166893)”, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Northeast Region, Public domain

This page covers the 2026-27 season year with agency data read on September 19, 2026 and an iNaturalist record to September 19, 2026. Every sentence about bear behaviour is Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s own, quoted exactly with a link to its page; every season window is republished from the agency page linked beside it, and windows the agency had not yet published are labelled not yet published. The month bars count what members of the public reported and are not a population. See also the national bear season guide.