The polarbear hunt in Greenland. Technical Report No. 45

The hunt for polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in
Greenland has no restrictions as to the number
of bears that can be killed each year. There are,
however, limitations in the type of hunting gear
that can be used, as well as restrictions in the
hunt of females and cubs. These restrictions
effectively prevent the increase of the range of the
hunters, but they have only limited effect within
the hunting area.

Most polar bears are hunted with dog sledges
during winter and spring as in earlier days but
an increasing number of bears are caught from
small skiffs in summer and fall.

The total yield has been stable in East Greenland
during the last decades, whereas Central and
Northwest Greenland have experienced an increase since mid 1980’s, probably as a result of
more bears in the area. More old bears are caught
in Ittoqqortoormiit than in Avanersuaq, and
along the coast, there seems to be several segregations between sex and age groups.
Catch statistics are an important tool in the management of the species but the present system
for registering the polar bear catches does fail in
some instances and can be improved.