Fort Lauderdale, FL – Florida’s first bear hunt in 20 years will end in a week or when 320 bears have been killed, whichever comes first.
That’s the decision made by the Florida Fish & Wildife Conservation Commission after its 4-3 vote in favor of that target number on Wednesday, the first day of its scheduled 2-day session in Fort Lauderdale.
FWC Chairman Brian Yablonski cast the deciding vote after he and the other 6 commissioners deadlocked at 3. Liesa Priddy and Charles W. Roberts III were the other “yes” votes.
The vote came following a large amount of public comments during the meeting, with most of them speaking against the hunt and some fearing that the large number of hunting permits already sold will lead to way more than 320 bears being killed this year.
FWC staff said during the meeting that they don’t fear the number of dead bears going much higher than 320, especially since bear hunters won’t be allowed to use hunting dogs or bait and a daily count on the number of bears killed will be kept.
The bear hunting season is scheduled to begin the final week of October, with over 1,800 hunting permits already sold by the FWC state-wide. That includes 100 in Volusia County and another 11 in Flagler County.
Permit sales will continue until the first day of the hunting season, which is October 24th.
Those same commissioners voted earlier this year to allow a bear hunting season for the first time in the Sunshine State since 1994, citing a growing population that needed to be thinned out in order to prevent more contact between humans and bears, especially in growing neighborhoods which used to be bear territory.
Prior to that decision, bear hunting was illegal in the state, with the animal considered an endangered species. But FWC staff pushed for the hunt in the face of more documented interactions between humans and bears in neighborhoods.
Current population estimates show that there are over 3,000 bears roaming throughout Florida, including around 1,300 in Central Florida. That’s a 30% increase since 2002.
State records show Volusia County led all others in the state in nuisance bear calls last year, primarily about bears raiding garbage cans, pet feeders or any other kind of perceived food source.
A Seminole County-based group called Speak Up Wekiva is suing the FWC to prevent the hunt from taking place, while others argue that the FWC has to do more to make sure those who live in neighborhoods with bears do everything they can not to leave food outdoors, including the use of bear-resistant garbage cans.
The FWC did pass a new rule this summer allowing officers to issue $100 fines to residents who leave food sources within easy reach of bears.
Copyright 2015 Southern Stone Communications.