A group of advocates for wildlife protection are organizing multiple rallies on Saturday across Florida in opposition to a plan to reinstate a trophy hunt for black bears.
“The only justification the FWC [Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission] has given for having the hunt is to offer an opportunity for trophy hunters to bag a bear,” the group Bear Defenders said in a statement announcing the protests.
“This decision is not rooted in sound science or necessity,” the group said. “This proposal serves only to appease special interests at the expense of Florida’s wildlife and the overwhelming majority of Floridians who oppose the bear hunt.”
“The FWC’s plan not only undermines public trust but also threatens the long-term stability of Florida’s recovering bear population, an ecologically significant keystone species vital to the health of Florida’s ecosystems,” says the group.
The group already has more than 33,000 people who have signed their petition opposing the bear hunt. And protests are planned in 13 cities, from Jacksonville to Miami to Tallahassee
READ MORE: Florida officials release grisly details of the first fatal bear attack in state history
The protests come less than a week before state wildlife officials hold a public hearing to consider a proposal that would create an annual “limited-entry” black bear hunt. It would be the first in more than a decade.
A summary of the proposal has been posted online in advance of the two-day FWC meeting, May 21-22 at the College of Central Florida in Ocala.
“Managing (bear) population growth is important to balance species numbers with suitable habitat and maintain a healthy population,” according to the summary by Hunting and Game Management Director Morgan Richardson.
The proposal would allow the first hunt since October 2015 to run from the first Saturday in December through the last Sunday in December, with future hunts held each year between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31.
In 2015, 304 bears were killed in two days after permits were distributed to anyone who paid. The new proposal includes issuing permits through a random draw. The number of permits would be based on factors such as female bear survival and mortality data that would include prior year “hunting success rates.”
Hunting would be allowed within what are known as “bear management units” that have at least 200 bears.
Bear hunting has long been a controversial issue in Florida.
Supporters say, in part, a hunt could help better manage bear populations as the animals interact with humans. They also point to a voter-approved ballot measure in November that enshrined hunting and fishing rights in the state Constitution.
Opponents, including Bear Defenders, have argued that hunting doesn’t reduce human-bear interactions and say the state should use non-lethal options to address bear populations. They say unsecured trash continues to be a lure for bears on residential and commercial properties. This month, FWC investigators confirmed that an 89-year old Collier County man was the first recorded fatal victim of a bear attack in Florida history.
The state has recorded 42 incidents since the 1970s of wild bears making physical contact with people.
Bear Defenders say Florida’s black bears were once nearly extinct, with populations as low as 300–500 in the 1970s. They says decades of protection allowed the population to rebound — albeit slowly — to an estimated 4,050 bears statewide.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this story.
