Florida approves first black bear hunt in over a decade
December’s three-week bear hunt will see nearly 200 black bears killed using outlawed methods like baiting, dog packs, and bows and arrows.
The first black bear hunt in Florida in more than ten years has been approved by state regulators, with wildlife conservationists warning the decision could have devastating effects on Florida’s already fragile bear population.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) voted unanimously in favor of the new rule during a public hearing in the Panhandle town of Havana in Gadsden County north of Tallahassee. The commissioners heard from 167 people who signed up to speak about the proposal, with opponents of the hunt outnumbering supporters, according to a draft of the meeting minutes.
Proponents claim that hunting is “an important and effective tool” for managing wildlife populations, and say the decision is necessary to control the number of native Florida black bears and reduce increasing human-bear encounters.
There has been only one known fatal black bear mauling in the state, which happened in May in a rural part of Collier County, in southwest Florida. Since 2006, the commission has recorded 43 human-bear encounters in the state, with almost all of them also involving a dog.
Opponents have slammed the hunt as “legalized animal cruelty” using flawed science, stating the commissioners were using population estimates in place of a formal bear census, which won’t be completed for another five years.
“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.
“Is our future one of pictures of trophy hunters standing over dead animals in vast concrete parking lots? [Florida governor] Ron DeSantis could stop this hunt right now and leave an enduring legacy for our children and grandchildren.”
An initial 27-day hunt will start on December 6, with the FWC issuing permits for the slaughter of 187 bears - almost 5 percent of Florida’s estimated total of 4,000 - in four hunting zones where the bear population exceeds 200. This will be followed by annual bear hunting seasons that run from October through December.
Several hunting methods will be permitted, including bows and arrows, luring bears with food traps, shotguns, and setting trained dogs on their prey beginning in 2027.
Although bear hunting is legal in 32 states, only 17 permit the use of dogs, a practice widely condemned by animal welfare experts due to the extreme stress it causes bears, the increased likelihood of orphaned cubs, and a rise in human-bear conflicts.
“It’s just slaughter and torture,” said Adam Sugalski, founder of the wildlife advocacy group Bear Defenders. “Using dogs is legalized animal cruelty. The dogs will be phased in over the next few years after they’re trained, meaning in the off-season you can just run your dogs to the woods and chase bears just for fun, and kill them.”
All seven current FWC commissioners were either appointed or reappointed by Governor DeSantis, Steve Meyers, an attorney involved in the lawsuit opposing the hunt, pointed out.
“The imagery of a Ron DeSantis bear hunt is not going to be a harvest, it’s going to be the lifeless bodies of black bears hanging upside down with blood pouring out of their mouths,” he said. “The media doesn’t need pictures from this hunt. The ones from the last hunt will be just fine. Ron DeSantis’s face will be wedded to that imagery.”
Officials claim the hunting will not mirror the controversial 2015 Florida hunt, which was cut short after two days when 300 bears were killed in just 48 hours. It saw multiple violations, including unlicensed hunters, the killing of cubs and pregnant females, and the illegal use of bait.
Photo: Bear Warriors United
During the hearing, the final public comment came from Kelsi Bloode, age nine, who received a roomful of applause: “When hunters use arrows, the bear keeps running, confused and scared — that’s not a kind way to treat any animal,” she said. “Bears are part of Florida’s wild family.”
As part of efforts to stop the FWC’s planned hunt in December, Bear Warriors United, a nonprofit based in Oviedo dedicated to protecting Florida’s wildlife, filed a lawsuit on August 15 to block the hunt and invalidate the commission’s approval.
The FWC plans to issue the 187 bear hunting permits for this December through a $5 lottery draw. Although applications haven’t opened yet, opponents of the hunt are organizing on Facebook to enter the lottery themselves, hoping to secure permits that will go unused, in the hope of saving some bears from being killed.
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