207 bears killed statewide on first day of black bear hunt in 20 years

COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. – Wildlife officials say 207 bears were killed on the first day of the Florida Black Bear hunt. However, it wasn’t just hunters who came to check-in stations, people against the hunt also showed up to voice their concerns.

Florida Fish and Wildlife (FWC) officers weighed bear after bear on the first day of hunting at the Dinner Island check-in station near Hendry and Collier County, one of several in Southwest Florida.

Hunters remained tight-lipped as they brought back their trophy to be weighed, measured, and documented. One of the bears weighed in at more than 500lbs. and several others were just under 200lbs. People against the hunt watched as bears were hauled off trucks.

“It was very sad–130 pounds. The limit is 100 and this one was basically a six month old baby,” Sebastian Acosta, a volunteer taking photos at the check-in station said.

The black bear hunt has been a controversial topic for years and this is the first hunt in Florida since 1994. More than 150 people in Southwest Florida are registered, 3,000 are registered statewide. Wildlife officers say the goal is to control population. Right now there’s an estimated 3,000 black bears in Florida, and the state wants to cut the number by 320.

“Hunting’s a big part of conservation. And it’s important to keep numbers in check, and it’s a pretty rare opportunity, first time in 20-something years,” a hunter said.

However, environmentalists see it another way.

“Hunting on public lands, hunting in these rural ranches is going to do nothing for the human-bear interactions,” Matthew Schwartz, the executive director of South Florida Wildlands Association said.

Of course, there are rules when it comes to the hunting. Each hunter is allowed to kill only one bear, no one is allowed to kill cubs or bears seen with cubs, no parts can be sold, and bears must be checked and tagged by the state within 12 hours.

The hunt will last seven days or until 320 bears are killed. South Florida has an objected harvest of 80 bears and only 15 were killed on the first day. The hunt will be open for North and South Florida Bear Management Units (BMU). The East Panhandle BMU and Central BMU met their objected harvest so they are now closed to the hunt.