TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV\/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – Florida will open its first bear hunting season in a decade Saturday, marking a significant shift in the state\u2019s wildlife management approach.<\/p>\n
The 23-day bear hunting season begins after the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission approved the hunt several months ago. FWC officials said the hunt is designed to help manage a growing bear population.<\/p>\n
Wildlife officials estimate more than 4,000 black bears now live in Florida. A constitutional amendment approved last year makes hunting Florida\u2019s preferred wildlife management method.<\/p>\n
The decision has drawn opposition from animal advocacy groups, who say they will continue fighting the policy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe effort could be put on making bear-wise communities, and how we can cohabitate with bears safely, we\u2019d be in a much better place,\u201d said Kate MacFall, Florida director of Humane World for Animals. \u201cBut we\u2019re sticking around, as are many other groups. We\u2019ll continue to advocate protection of Florida\u2019s black bears.\u201d<\/p>\n
Florida Politics<\/p>\n
Hunting supporters say the season addresses overpopulation concerns in specific areas.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s good for the bears to start with. We have bear management units; four of them are overpopulated,\u201d said Newton Cook, president of United Waterfowl of Florida. \u201cWhen an area gets overpopulated, the male bear kills the cub.\u201d<\/p>\n
This will be the first legal hunt since 2015, when Florida briefly reopened bear hunting after a 21-year ban.<\/p>\n
That season was cut short after hunters killed 300 bears in just two days.<\/p>\n
Permits for this year\u2019s hunt were awarded through a lottery system. It is too late for hunters to obtain permits for this season.<\/p>\n