52 Florida black bears killed

Roger Young, executive director of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, left, and Rodney Barreto, chairman, listen during a May 21, 2025, meeting in Ocala on a proposed Florida black bear hunt, which was approved later in the year. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette file photo]

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Dec. 30 issued a press release with the results of a Florida black bear hunt that took place from Dec. 6 to 28, during which 52 bears were harvested.

The hunt, initially approved during an FWC meeting at the College of Central Florida in Ocala on May 21, was met with pushback from organizations such as Bear Warriors United, which filed a lawsuit contending the commission violated several legal requirements, including approving a hunt using “obsolete” bear population numbers.

The hunt was formally approved in August and the FWC also approved rules for hunting in four regions of the state, along with a lottery process for hunters to obtain permits.

The rules established a permit-drawing process open to anyone paying a $5 entry fee. The process did not include a limit on the number of times people could enter, but those whose names were drawn could only purchase a single permit, for $100. Non-Floridians were to be limited to 10 percent of the permits, which would cost $300. Some people purchased permits with no intention of using them.

According to the Dec. 30 FWC release, “The new rules established Bear Hunting Zones (BHZ) within four of the seven existing Bear Management Units. Through a random drawing a total of 172 permits were issued across the East Panhandle, North, Central and South BMUs, and each permit allowed the harvest of one bear within the assigned BHZ. There were 52 bears harvested during the 2025 bear hunt, which is a hunter success rate very close to other states with similar hunt parameters. All harvested bears were physically checked by FWC staff and bear response contractors, providing valuable data that will influence future management strategies. Analysis of the data collected is underway and a full harvest report will be released in the coming months.”

“The 2025 black bear hunt, rooted in sound scientific data, was a success. We’re proud to have joined the more than 30 states that manage black bears with regulated hunting,” said FWC Executive Director Roger Young in the release. “The limited number of permits issued in areas with the largest bear populations and other components of the hunt prioritized a conservative approach that ensures the long-term health of bear populations in Florida, while providing opportunity for hunters.”

The ”Gazette” initiated a public information request on Dec. 29 to obtain the number of bears, if any, that were killed in the area of the Ocala National Forest/Marion County. That information had not been made available at the time this article was written.

To learn more, go to myfwc.com