Floridians to Mobilize Against Trophy Bear Hunt

The FWC is on the verge of greenlighting a bear hunt. There’s no reasonable justification for the proposed bear hunt. 

FWC’s bear population study will not be complete until 2030. No credible biologist, including those from the FWC, has stated that Florida bears are overpopulating, pose a significant public threat, or that bears have reached their social, biological, or ecological carrying capacities.  

The newly proposed rule changes incorporate dogs. 

Black bears are generally shy, elusive animals whose diets consist predominantly of vegetation. Unprovoked bear attacks are extremely rare. Since recorded history, there has only been one recorded human fatality caused by a Florida black bear. 

Hunting does not reduce bear-human conflicts. 

The proposal includes baiting and archery, both of which are known to cause prolonged suffering. Plans to introduce dog hunting in 2027 further underscore the cruelty at the core of this agenda. 

The 2015 bear hunt was shut down early, mainly due to citizen Bear Monitors stationed at mandatory check stations. This time, the FWC wants no check stations, no oversight, no on-the-ground monitoring.  

It has taken over 50 years for Florida’s black bears to recover from near extinction, which had reduced the bear population to as few as 300 bears. Today, Florida’s black bear population stands at only an estimated 4,050. Bears are slow to reproduce and regulate their own populations through a biological process known as delayed implantation. 

The FWC’s decisions are not in line with the will of the people. 

This is our final opportunity to demonstrate mass, visible, statewide opposition before the vote.