UPDATE: Extended N.J. bear hunt kill total increases to 306 for first 2 days

NEWTON -- The second day of the extended bear hunt in New Jersey saw another 75 bears killed, bringing the two-day total to 281, according to figures released by the state Department of Environmental Protection Tuesday night.

The two-day total is more than 50 percent of the number of bears harvested during the entire 2015 hunting season when a total of 510 bears were killed.

As of 7 p.m., the DEP hadn't released a breakdown of the number of bears harvested in each county, the biggest bear killed or the number of tagged bears killed.

On Monday, the first day of the extended hunt, a total of 206 bears were killed, the DEP reported.

The 2016 bear hunt in New Jersey marks the first time in decades that hunters in the state are permitted to kill bears using bow and arrows. The bow and arrow season runs until Wednesday.

From Thursday to Saturday, hunters may use bow and arrows as well as muzzleloaders to kill bears, according to the DEP.

David Chanda, the director of the New Jersey Fish and Wildlife Division, said Monday that in the northern one-third of New Jersey, the state has a population of 3,000 bears, the highest population in North America per square-mile over a 15,000-square-mile area.

Chanda said previous hunts harvested between 400 and 500 bears but another 700 to 800 cubs were born, negating any decrease in the population.

The first bear killed on Monday was a 104-pound female in Sussex County.

Five bear hunting zones are open to hunting in Bergen, Hunterdon, Mercer, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex and Warren counties. The DEP sold 7,664 permits for the first week of the bear hunt compared to the 8,799 permits sold for the 2015 season.

Hunters will have to apply for new permits when the firearm-only season takes place from Dec. 5 to Dec. 10.

The DEP has set a maximum number for the bear hunt based on the total number of bears tagged by state wildlife officials in the current year. In 2016, 197 bears have been tagged so far by DEP.

In the first day, 16 tagged bears were killed by hunters. If the number of bears harvested reaches 30 percent of bears tagged in 2016, about 59 bears, the hunt would end early.

More information on the bear hunt is available on the DEP's bear hunting season website.

Dave Hutchinson may be reached at dhutchinson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DHutch_SL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.