The Bear Hunt

By Samantha Joles

I. The Florida Black Bear

The Florida black bear is a subspecies of American black bear that resides in nearly every type of habitat in Florida.[i] In the 1970s, the Florida black bear population was just a few hundred bears.[ii] Today, the Florida black bear population has surpassed 4,000 bears.[iii] The FWC deems the resurgence of the Florida Black Bear as one of its most successful conservation efforts to date.[iv] The Florida black bear was removed from the list of State-designated Threated Species in June of 2012, thanks to the successful conservation efforts.[v] The Florida black bear has since been listed as a recovered species that is no longer a conservation concern.[vi]

II. Governing law

A. The Bear Conservation Rule

The Florida Black Bear Conservation Rule 68A-4.009, also known as the Bear Conservation Rule, protects bears and deems it is illegal to take, possess, injure, shoot, collect, or sell black bears or their parts, or attempt to engage in such conduct, except as authorized by the Commission.[vii] To “take” a bear is to pursue, hunt, molest, capture, or kill, or attempt any of these actions, regardless of whether such actions result in possession of the bear.[viii] The Rule further states that activities which may be eligible for exemption from the Bear Conservation Rule include the collection of scientific data needed for conservation or management of the species and the taking of bears that are causing property damage when non-lethal options are unavailable.[ix] This Rule functions to continue protecting the Florida black bear from population depletion despite it no longer being a threatened species.

III. The 2015 Bear Hunt

Florida does not currently have a regulated bear hunting season, however FWC has re-opened bear hunting in the past for purposes of population control. [x] In fact, in 2015 FWC re-opened bear hunting for the first time in 20 years.[xi] The hunting initiative, regulated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), has since become infamously known as the 2015 “Bear Hunt”. The FWC hosted the bear hunt under the assumption that an increasing bear population was contributing to growing numbers of human-bear conflicts.[xii] However, it has been theorized that many of the human-bear conflicts were the result of people negligently leaving out food attractants, for example unsecured garbage cans with food in them, which encouraged bears to forage in human communities.[xiii] FWC provided the following regulations in an effort to ensure a “humane” bear hunt; no baiting may be used to hunt, no killing of mothers with cubs, no killing of cubs over 100lbs.[xiv]

The bear hunt was called off by FWC after only the second day due to the unprecedented taking of 295 bears in a matter of 48 hours. Included in the death toll of almost 300 were lactating mother bears and bear cubs.[xv] Hunters involved in the 2015 bear hunt ventured outside of human neighborhoods where there were increased human-bear conflicts, instead hunting the bears which remained in heavily wooded habitats. Therefore, hunters were not taking the “problem” bears that were venturing too close to humans, rather they were hunting bears that were remaining in their territory. Further, the bear hunt created a bigger issue of orphaned cubs, which, as untrained hunters, are more likely to venture toward food attractants in human communities.[xvi]

Post-bear hunt, the FWC acknowledged the most effective method of controlling human-bear conflicts is to implement bear-proof trashcans in areas where there are known bear populations and educate the public on how to best avoid interactions with bears. [xvii] With the proper education of the public and implementation of bear-proof trash cans, the FWC itself states that bear hunts may not be all that necessary.

IV. Proposed 2025 Bear Hunt

Talks of another bear hunt are looming after passage of the Florida Right to Hunt and Fish Amendment, an amendment to the Florida Constitution which enumerates hunting as the preferred method of managing and controlling wildlife populations.[xviii] On December 11, 2024, FWC directed Officials to provide proposals for a possible bear hunt to be held in coming years due to concerns that bears are being witnessed in urban areas more frequently.[xix] Opponents of a 2025 bear hunt argue that emphasis should be put on expanding the use of bear-proof trash cans in rural areas, rather than allowing another hunt.[xx] On the other hand, proponents of the bear hunt state that Floridians have determined hunting to be the best method of population control in their November 2024 ballots.[xxi] The FWC must now balance the public’s preference for hunting and the necessity of taking bears to control the Florida black bear population.

[i] Florida Black Bear, Florida Wildlife Federation, https://floridawildlifefederation.org/florida-black-bear/

[ii] Florida Black Bear, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, https://myfwc.com/hunting/bear/

[iii] Id.

[iv]  Id.

[v] Fla. Admin. Code Ann. r. 68A-27.003

[vi] Florida Black Bear, Florida Wildlife Federation, https://floridawildlifefederation.org/florida-black-bear/

[vii] Fla. Admin. Code Ann. r. 68A-4.009

[viii] Fla. Admin. Code Ann. r. 68A-1.004 (81)

[ix] Id.

[x] Florida Black Bear, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, https://myfwc.com/hunting/bear/

[xi] Id.

[xii] George Wuerthner, Florida Black Bear Hunt Represents Failure of Wildlife Management, The Wildlife News, Oct. 26, 2015, https://www.thewildlifenews.com/2015/10/26/florida-black-bear-hunt-represents-failure-of-wildlife-management/

[xiii] Id.

[xiv] Libra Lionheart, The Florida Black Bear Hunt – Aftermath, Nov. 1, 2015, https://libralionheart.com/2015/11/01/the-florida-black-bear-hunt-aftermath/

[xv] Id.

[xvi] George Wuerthner, Florida Black Bear Hunt Represents Failure of Wildlife Management, The Wildlife News, Oct. 26, 2015, https://www.thewildlifenews.com/2015/10/26/florida-black-bear-hunt-represents-failure-of-wildlife-management/

[xvii] Libra Lionheart, The Florida Black Bear Hunt – Aftermath, Nov. 1, 2015, https://libralionheart.com/2015/11/01/the-florida-black-bear-hunt-aftermath/

[xviii][xviii] Fla. Const. art. I, § 28

[xix] Jim Saunders, Florida FWC to Consider New Black Bear Hunt, WTSP, Dec. 12, 2024, https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/polkcounty/florida-black-bear-hunt-possible-fwc/67-782bf4f6-4d98-48dc-8808-c4fa64119303

[xx] Id.

[xxi] Id.