AUBURN – About two dozen people who want to ban the baiting and trapping of bears demonstrated Saturday near the Auburn Mall.

They held signs and waved to passing motorists from 11 a.m. to about 2 p.m. beside Route 4 at the Auburn Mall and Shaw’s Plaza entrance. Many drivers responded by blowing their horns to indicate support for the passage of Question 2 on Tuesday.

Lisa Haines, representing Maine Citizens for Fair Bear Hunting, said her organization, as well as members of Hunters for Fair Bear Hunting and Women Against Cruelty, had volunteers on hand. They came from several Maine towns where bear hunting is common, she said.

“We’re trying to say hello to all the Lewiston-Auburn people and just let them know what our message is,” She said. “We also plan to scour the Lewiston-Auburn area with leaflets, distributing them throughout several neighborhoods.”

In addition to seeking an end to what they say is cruelty in bear hunting, she said the group believes the supplemental feeding of bears should stop.

“We’re dumping around 3 million pounds of food in the woods,” Haines said. “To me, feeding high-calorie foods to the bears is only increasing the population, not decreasing it,” she said. “That needs to addressed as well. It has only been around for 25 years, and prior to that we never had bear population problems.”

Haines said, “It seems, since Fish and Wildlife (the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife) is claiming that populations are increasing, it makes sense that the supplemental feeding or baiting could be causing that issue.”

When asked about an assertion by state wildlife experts that only about 3 percent of the state’s bear population is trapped, Haines said, “Is it right for 200 to 300 bears to be trapped? I don’t think any percentage is acceptable. We don’t accept animal cruelty here in Maine. Whether it’s one bear, two bears or 300 bears, we just don’t accept that.”

Bill Randall of Winthrop, a member of Hunters for Fair Bear Hunting, said, “We believe that this (hunting practice) demeans us as hunters, and it also demeans hunting. We think we ought to put the sport back in sportsmanship and the hunt back in hunting.”

His organization has about 600 members, including both hunters and guides. Randall said he has been a bear guide and a bear trapper.

“I’ve done all of these things,” he said. “Bear trapping is the most egregious of all.”

Jonathan Carter, Maine conservationist and Green Party candidate for governor in 2002, also was present for the event. He said he was on hand as a volunteer to hold signs, but he declined to comment. He has worked on behalf of the Maine Citizens for Fair Bear Hunting campaign.

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