A Gettysburg, Pa., man has been charged in the attempted sale of a black bear hide during a Native American Powwow at the Howard County Fairgrounds in West Friendship last weekend, according to Maryland Natural Resources Police.
Sgt. Ken Turner said that Edward Leroy Myers, 49, violated state laws prohibiting the sale of bear skins.
"We're trying to prevent so-called 'market hunters,' or people who hunt for a living," Turner said. "State law allows commercial fishing, but not commercial hunting with a few exceptions."
Trappers, for instance, can sell mink, coyote, beaver, otter and possum pelts, among others. But selling hides from larger species, such as bears or tigers, in Maryland is illegal - no matter where the animal was killed.