Eight-Year-Old Girl Tags Maryland's First Bear The first kill of Maryland's second annual black bear season is credited to 8-year-old Sierra Stiles, reports the Washington Post. Hunting with her father and granduncle at Mount Nebo Wildlife Management Area last Monday, opening day of the second bear season in Maryland after a half-century closure, the 4 1/2-foot-tall Stiles downed the 211-pound bruin with her .243 rifle at 50 yards. By Thursday, hunters had taken 40 bears, causing the state's Department of Natural Resources to proclaim the hunt a success and close the season, which had a targeted harvest of 40 to 55 bears.