Florida wildlife officials have approved the state's first bear hunting season in a decade as the black bear population continues to grow and encounters with humans increase.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission voted to open a 23-day hunt in December after determining the bear population has more than tripled since the 1990s, CBS News reported.
The bear population has grown from around 1,200 in the 1990s to more than 4,000 today, according to state wildlife officials.
Black bears in Florida can weigh up to 350 pounds on average and are found in forested areas throughout the state.
Human-bear encounters have made headlines recently, including a tragic incident in rural South Florida where a bear killed an 89-year-old man and his dog in May.
Daniel Levesque, an avid hunter, plans to apply for one of the 187 permits that will be issued, each allowing one bear kill.
"It's time to balance," Levesque said.
The last bear hunt in Florida occurred in 2015 but was stopped after 304 bears were killed within 48 hours.
"What they're allowing us to hunt is an insignificant fraction of the bear population. They'll die of old age quicker than will impact them from hunting," Levesque said.
The decision has sparked opposition from environmental advocates who question the state's population estimates and worry about habitat loss.
"We are developing in this state at an insane speed, so the bears are being pushed out of their habitat. We're building roads through their habitat," said Rhonda Roff with the Sierra Club.
Roff doesn't believe the hunt will reduce problematic bear encounters with humans.
"The hunts will happen in the woods. Those bears are not the ones that are coming out," Roff said.
Florida wildlife officials said that by their estimates, "multiple bear subpopulations were determined to be large and healthy enough to sustain a hunt."
Meanwhile, Levesque continues practicing for his chance to hunt a Florida black bear.
📲: CONNECT WITH US
Blue Sky | Facebook | Instagram | X | Threads | TikTok | YouTube
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. To learn more about how we use AI in our newsroom, click here.
