Most people didn’t realize it, but one of Maine’s most important big-game hunts opened yesterday. Without the fanfare of a lottery, or the ritual of hunters’ breakfasts to publicize and attract attention to it, the 1995 bear season arrived quietly and on schedule – like a bear coming to a bait.

For the record, Maine’s bear season is Aug. 28-Nov. 25. The bruins may be hunted over baits from now until Sept. 23 and with hounds from Sept. 11-Oct. 27.

In keeping with the increased and much-publicized bear sightings reported this summer, wildlife biologist Craig McLaughlin, bear project leader for the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, predicts a kill of 2,300-2,400 bears this fall.

McLaughlin said that the first week of hunting bears over baits – the most successful method – would produce the highest percentage of the kill. Hunter-success rate decreases during the remainder of the season, he explained.

Last year, Maine bear hunters tagged a total of 2,243 of the shy, elusive animals that have difficulty resisting anything sweet and greasy. For that reason, 1,390 of the bears that became trophy mounts or rugs last year were shot over baits. Hound hunters tracked down 282 bruins in 1994; deer hunters tagged 526 “bonus bears;” and 45 were trapped.

McLaughlin said he expected bears to den early this fall because beechnuts were in short supply. For that reason, he allowed that deer hunters would have fewer bears in their sights during the 1995 hunting season.

Baiting bears, you may know, has drawn criticism from some corners. Randy Cross, an avid bear hunter and guide who also is a wildlife biologist with the DIFW, says it’s unfortunate many people don’t realize the importance of baiting to Maine’s bear-management program.

“It’s the only realistic means we have of controlling the harvest,” said Cross. “About 50-60 percent of the bears registered each fall are shot over baits. Without those numbers, we couldn’t manage the resource efficiently – and that would create more nuisance bears.”

Accordingly, the biologists explained that the DIFW had reached its bear-management goal of 21,000 to 22,000 animals statewide, and maintaining the resource depended greatly on hunter-harvest figures.

Even among sportsmen, bear-baiting often is misunderstood. The common belief is that shooting a bear over a bait amounts to nothing more than setting out a bucketful of stale pastries, bacon fat or meat scraps and waiting for a bear to stick its head into it.

Don’t believe it. That’s like saying all that’s needed to shoot ducks is to toss out some decoys. Good luck. I’m willing to bet that the people, sports included, who speak loudest in opposing bear-baiting have never “sat on a bait.”

“The controversy about baiting is ongoing,” said McLaughlin. “Next year we’ll have a major planning effort in which we’ll re-assess statistics regarding the bear population and its use. There’s nothing in the plan for restricting baiting.”

It will surprise a lot of people, as it does me, that Maine resident hunters will purchase 50-60 percent of the 10,000 or so bear-hunting permits sold this year. A bear permit is required in addition to a state hunting license. The permit fees are: Maine residents, $5; non-residents, $15.

There’s no denying that bear hunting has become big business in Maine. The clever bruins, once considered pests, now are valuable big-game animals to the state and guides alike. Randy Cross allows that, depending on accommodations, the fee for a six-day bear hunt averages $1,000.

He added, however, that the figure is misleading regarding profit. “Even in small, single-guide operations, when you add up the price of bait, traveling, wear and tear on vehicles and the hours a guide puts in, the gravy gets thin.”

Fascinating critters, bears. So swift and silent and smart that many people who spend time off the main road never see the animal synonymous with wilderness and big-game hunting in Maine.

Reminder: The hearing to consider adoption of Maine’s 1995-96 waterfowl-hunting seasons will be held Wednesday evening at the Augusta Civic Center. Legal gunning time is 7 p.m. Considering the options offered in the federal framework, the shooting should be fast and furious.