With growing pressure to reinstate bear hunting in Florida, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) will review the state’s black bear management plan at a meeting next week.
The FWC will receive an update on the 2019 plan during its Wednesday meeting in Lakeland. This comes as concerns rise about increasing human-bear interactions and calls for a renewed hunting season, which hasn’t been allowed in Florida for nearly a decade.
READ: US Marshals: Bear Attack Hoax Leads To Tennessee Murder Suspect’s Arrest In South Carolina
According to an FWC memo, Florida’s black bear population exceeds 4,000, and the agency receives over 6,000 bear-related calls annually. The current management strategy focuses on mitigating conflicts by securing garbage and removing bears that pose a risk to the public.
Despite these efforts, an average of 300 bears are killed by vehicles each year, and one person is injured by a bear annually. In June, Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law bolstering self-defense arguments for individuals who kill bears on their property, further fueling the debate surrounding bear management.
READ: Florida Bears Can Be Found In Unexpected Places. What You Should Do.
This law, while addressing concerns about bear encounters in some rural communities, has also faced criticism from those who fear it will lead to increased bear deaths. The FWC meeting will provide a platform for discussing these complex issues and evaluating the effectiveness of the current management plan.
The outcome of this meeting could significantly impact the future of black bears in Florida, potentially influencing decisions on whether to reintroduce a hunting season or implement alternative management strategies.
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