Polar bear hunters in remote villages on the coast of the Chukchi Sea will have higher harvest quotas next year, a sign of the health of the region’s bear population.
The US-Russia Polar Bear Commission increased the possible harvest level for bears in the Chukchi Sea from 58 to 85 bears.
The quota is split between the two countries, although all polar bear hunting, including subsistence hunting, remains banned in Russia.
The commission met last week in Egvekinot in Chukotka, Russia, and heard new estimates of bear abundance by science advisers and recommendations by indigenous and local sources.
Katya Wassillie, executive director of the Alaska Nannut Co-Management Council, which represents Alaska tribes that hunt for polar bears, said a higher quota does not mean more bears will be killed.
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Exposing the Big Game 
Polar bears in trouble due to global warming. The Russians bar hunting but the good old USA permits it because our Eskimos, as opposed to their Eskimos, need the dead bears for what, exactly?
Good question. Their egos? For parts to sell?