ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida’s wildlife officials are pushing ahead with plans for a statewide black bear hunt later this year, but not everyone is on board.

Bear Warriors United, a conservation group, has filed for an injunction and has filed a lawsuit to try to stop the hunt before it even starts.

What You Need To Know

Conservation group Bear Warriors United has filed a lawsuit and injunction to stop the hunt

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission plans to move forward with a statewide bear hunt later this year

A court hearing is scheduled for the week of Nov. 17 to determine whether the hunt can proceed

FWC estimates there are 4,000 to 4,500 bears statewide, but opponents dispute that figure

Leon County Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey plans to hear the case the week of Nov. 17 but could put it off until Nov. 24-25 to decide if the hunt goes forward or gets put on hold.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in August approved a proposal to allow 187 bears to be removed from the state in four designated “bear harvest zones.” Hunters had to apply for a bear harvest permit through the commission’s online licensing system and pay a nonrefundable fee of $5. A total of 172 permits statewide were made available through a random lottery system, and the recipients of those permits had to pay $100 for them.

Hendrick Gouws, who hunts with a bow, said he supports the hunt because he thinks some bears are too used to people and that hunting will help keep them in check.

“I think the bear hunt will accomplish removing the bears that are desensitized by humans,” he said.

On the other side, Bear Warriors United argues the state doesn’t have current data to back up its claims about a booming bear population.

The group’s attorney, Raquel Levy, pointed out that in Central Florida, nobody has conducted a bear population study in two decades.

“So, the FWC is now arbitrarily and capriciously saying we need a bear hunt,” she said.

The FWC said on its website that bear numbers are rising and that hunting helps cut down on car accidents and malnourished bears.

But Levy isn’t buying it.

She said the only recent study FWC finished is in Florida’s Panhandle area with the Osceola bear group, and it actually showed a two-thirds drop in numbers.

The FWC already removes nuisance bears when it must, so Bear Warriors United said there is no reason for a statewide hunt.

Now it’s up to the court.