HOLDEN – Got questions about scientific and ethical issues related to the November referendum on banning bear hunting with dogs, bait and traps?

The Penobscot Valley Chapter of Maine Audubon is hosting a bear referendum forum to give the public an opportunity to question panelists.

Panelists include:

• Robert Fisk, director of Maine Citizens for Fair Bear Hunting, the man behind the referendum.

• Tenley Meara, spokeswoman for the Maine Fish and Wildife Conservation Council.

• Jennifer Vashon, wildlife biologist and bear project leader, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Maine Audubon representatives are also expected to attend, although Maine Audubon announced earlier this year that it would neither support nor oppose the referendum.

Instead, Maine Audubon has been circulating unbiased, current scientific information pertinent to Maine’s bear population as a whole, according to a press release from spokeswoman Marie Malin.

More information may be obtained by calling Sandi Duchesne, president of Penobscot Valley Chapter of Maine Audubon, at 942-6389; Elyse Tipton, Maine Audubon communications director, at 781-2330, extension 229; or Judy Markowsky, director Fields Pond Audubon Center, at 989-2591.