Bear Hunting

Florida could move toward its first sanctioned bear hunt in nearly a decade.The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Wednesday directed officials to bring forward proposals for a possible bear hunt. The proposals are expected to be completed by a May commission meeting, giving staff members time to compile data from ongoing studies about bear populations and gather more public input.

People would be allowed to kill bears on their property without permits if they feel threatened or think it is necessary for protection, under a bill that moved forward Tuesday in the Florida House.

It’s been nearly eight years since the last state-sanctioned bear hunt, and Franklin County Sheriff A.J. Smith said Florida needs to find solutions as encounters between the animals and humans are increasing.“We need to look at some different ways of doing things,” Smith told The News Service of Florida on Monday.During the past few weeks, a woman in the rural Gulf Coast county southwest of Tallahassee had to lock herself inside a bedroom as a bear broke into her home. In a separate incident, a woman was trapped in a car by a large black bear.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials confirmed Thursday that the state won’t hold a bear hunt this year.

Florida wildlife officials Wednesday backed a 10-year plan to manage the state’s growing black bear population , with the plan maintaining hunting as an...

Black bears mothering cubs under 100 pounds would be off-limits if the state conducts bear hunts in the future, under a measure filed Wednesday by Sen....

Florida Wildlife Officials are putting the possibility of a black bear hunt on hold—at least for the next few years. The decision came during a...

Democratic lawmakers are calling for a 10-year moratorium on black bear hunting in Florida.

There won’t be a bear hunt in Florida this year. Last year the state held its first black bear hunt in two decades, but the Fish and Wildlife...

The parameters of a proposed second bear hunt in Florida in as many decades are beginning to emerge.