We're Going On A Bear Hunt: Florida Approves First Black Bear Hunt In 10 Years

Commissioners of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) have decided to allow black bear hunting for the first time in 10 years within the state of Florida.

The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.

The decision was made based on a unanimous vote that took place on Wednesday August 13, which will allow a limited hunting season to begin on December 6 and run until December 28. The FWC will issue 187 permits which will allow the killing of one black bear per hunter, only in certain regions where the bear population is considered large enough. 

“I am proud that Florida is joining the majority of states that manage black bears with regulated hunting,” said Rodney Barreto, Chairman of the FWC, in a statement. “The components of the hunt are conservative and prioritize conservation, with a limited number of permits only being issued in the areas of the state with the largest bear populations.”

The FWC says that allowing regulated hunting can help manage population growth rates. However, the FWC meeting, which took place in Havana, was met with criticism by animal rights groups and even hunters themselves. Further criticism is directed toward the allowed methods for killing the bears, including the use of bows and arrows and the future use of setting trained dogs to kill the bears. 

“This ill-conceived bear hunt will endanger an already threatened animal and open the door to destruction of critical wilderness habitat throughout Florida,” Susannah Randolph, chapter director of the Sierra Club, told the panel, reports The Guardian.

The decision comes after the deaths of three black bears in May, following the first ever fatal black bear attack in Florida in which an 89-year-old man and a dog were killed. Another bear mauling also occurred earlier this year. As the population of Florida continues to grow, human-wildlife conflict with the bears appears to be increasing. 

Florida is home to around 4,000 black bears, therefore the 187 permits make up almost 5 percent of the population. This comes after what the FWC call “one of Florida’s most successful conservation efforts” after black bear numbers increased from only several hundred in the 1970s.

Ten years ago, in the last Florida bear hunt, over 300 bears were killed within a 48-hour period, and the hunt ended early due to the chaotic nature of the event. People involved in that hunt were also accused of illegally killing cubs, pregnant females, and mothers. 

“Not all the hunters support this hunt. We’d like to see nature in balance,"  Lauren Jorgensen, a ranch owner in Suwannee Country, told the Independent. 

Further afield, last month, the first black bear was killed in Yellowstone National Park for five years.