Florida Considers First Bear Hunt in a Decade

The last Florida bear hunting season was held in 2015. (Photo by Jean Blom)

Florida is considering instituting a black bear hunting season to help manage the abundance of bears in the state.

According to weartv.com, in December, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission asked its staff to come up with proposals for a possible hunt. The commission says there are more than 4,000 bears in the state, compared to just several hundred in the 1970s.

The commission closed bear hunting in Florida in 1994, but then re-opened a week-long season in 2015. But that hunt was shut down after the second day because a higher number of bears (more than 300 total) were killed than expected. At that time, quotas were set at four areas where hunting was allowed. But hunters killed more bears than the limit by the end of the first day, causing the state to close two of the areas. Twice as many bears were killed than permits allowed in the eastern Panhandle.

Still, wildlife experts say bear subpopulations today are “large and healthy enough to sustain a hunt” with no evidence of declining populations over the past decade. The commission plans to come up with hunting options to present to the public after it reviews past hunting regulations, and how other states handle bear hunts.

Wildlife commissioners are hosting a virtual meeting on March 13 at 6 p.m. to hear the public’s thoughts about a possible bear hunt. The agency is also collecting feedback via email through BearComments@MyFWC.com.