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693-Pound Bear Shot During Day 1 Of Bear Hunt In New Jersey

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- Day 2 of New Jersey's annual black bear hunt faces a wet and cold start as a nor'easter brings heavy rain and sleet to parts of the state.

Hunters on Monday killed 124 bears on the first day of the six-day bear hunt.

Most were shot in Sussex and Warren counties.

The first bear was a 135-pound female bagged in Vernon Township.

A hunter shot and killed a 693-pound bruin that was taken to the bear check station at the Whittingham Wildlife Management Area.

The largest bear ever reported shot in New Jersey was an 829-pound bear in the 2011 hunt.

The number of bears killed in the hunt has dropped from nearly 600 in 2010 to about 250 last year.

(© Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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