HAVANA, Fla. – Wildlife officials on Wednesday unanimously voted to approve a bear hunting season in Florida.
After more than two hours of public comment, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission voted 5-0 in favor of the bear hunt, which will take place over 23 days in December.
Proponents say a growing bear population has become a problem in many neighborhoods.
The last bear hunt in Florida took place 10 years ago.
The proposal has drawn months of debate and demonstrations across the state. In the days leading up to the vote, protesters rallied in downtown Orlando and other cities, urging commissioners to reject the plan.
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“The more time we spend educating the public on how to live properly with bears, to reduce the negative bear-human conflict, the longer the bears would survive,” said Bryan Wilson, Central Florida coordinator for the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida.
Discussions over the hunt began in December as a way to reduce bear-human encounters and manage a population the FWC estimates at more than 4,000.
Some hunters say a limited hunt is necessary.
“I’m in extreme support of this hunt,” said Daniel Levesque, an avid hunter and owner of Gobbler Lodge. “I think the focus needs to be strategic limit, it’s mandatory. These guys are not checked, they’re abundant. If these were Kodiaks or grizzlies, it would be a whole ’nother story.”
Florida last held a bear hunt in 2015, ending it early after hunters killed 300 bears in just two days, nearing the statewide limit of 320.
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Under this year’s proposal, hunts would be allowed only in bear management units with at least 200 bears. The FWC would issue just 187 permits through a lottery system, with each permit holder allowed to take one bear.
Dates, quotas and locations for future hunting seasons will be decided annually, if the state defeats an administrative challenge by the wildlife group Bear Warriors United, according to USA Today.
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