Sportsman Grateful as Fla. Black Bear Hunt Moves Forward

Guest commentary: FWC leadership uses science-based management over sentimentality.

December 03, 2025 By Terry Gibson

Guest commentary by Terry Gibson

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commissioners and staff who spent years assessing data and management models for permitting a conservative bear hunt deserve tremendous thanks for putting science-based management before irrational sentimentality.

The FWC’s approval, in August, of a black bear hunt sets an important example for other state agencies under pressure from groups and individuals opposing sustainable hunting for sentimental reasons.

Opponents of the hunt sued but subsequently failed to convince a judge that FWC’s science was “outdated.”

Recognizing that the data FWC used to approve the hunt is robust, Leon County Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey denied a request for temporary preliminary injunction. Dempsey’s decision means the Florida bear hunt will proceed Dec. 6, though there’s another hearing in the same court scheduled for Dec. 15.

The Backstory

In 1974, Florida black bears were designated by the state as “threatened.” By 2012, the population had rebounded sufficiently to delist them. The 2025 black bear hunt will be the first since 2015, and only the second since 1994, when bear hunting was closed statewide.

The 2025 hunt allows only 187 permits across four zones from a population of more than 4,000 bears. Models indicate that harvest number is unlikely to do more than marginally slow black popular population growth. Furthermore, no bears are to be harvested from zones hosting small genetic sub-populations, or in the Big Cypress National Preserve.

With the 2025 bear hunt, Florida rejoins the 34 of 40 states with black bear populations that currently allow sustainable bear hunting seasons and limits. The Florida hunt’s design is wholly in keeping with the North American Model of Wildlife Management, which is widely considered the world’s best management model. In concert with federal laws such as the Endangered Species Act, this model has largely prevented the depletion of managed wildlife and contributed to a growing number of restoration stories, including deer, turkeys, and black bears.

It's telling that those opposing the Florida black bear hunt mostly took advantage of the public comment opportunities to berate FWC commissioners and staff, while ignoring staff presentations and the agency’s strong adherence to the North American Model’s most important principle: Scientific management is the proper means for wildlife conservation.

The Blowback

After FWC commissioners unanimously approved the hunt, opponents adopted a meddlesome strategy. They entered the lottery for bear tags with the express intent of preventing the harvest of bears. According to FWC, 163,450 applications were submitted for the 172 tags.

This tactic interferes with an agency working to ensure that “every person has an equal opportunity under the law to participate in hunting and fishing,” another of the North American Model’s core principles. It may be illegal. In 2024, Floridians voted overwhelming to add the right to fish and hunt to Florida’s constitution. The ballot initiative earned 67.3% of the vote, making Florida the 24th state to constitutionally enshrine fishing and hunting rights. The constitutional law recognizes “hunting and fishing forever as a public right and preferred means of responsibly managing and controlling fish and wildlife.”

Not to worry. Buying up tags to spare bears will likely backfire on the fringe elements so emotionally invested in preventing bear hunting. FWC has indicated that it will compare the number of unused tags with hunter success to inform future quotas, which will likely suggest higher numbers of bear tags in future seasons, if a significant number of hunt opponents succeeded in drawing and sitting on tags. It looks like 40 to 50 people not intending to hunt bears won the tag lottery.

I’m deeply grateful that FWC chose science over sentimentality and hysteria. This decision has state and national implications for hunting and wildlife management, especially in states like Florida where hunters are vastly outnumbered by people with little to no connection to the sport, or for that matter, to Florida’s woods and waters. What’s next for the anti-hunting agenda? Quail: too cute to shoot? Veggies, not venison?

The agency upheld our nation’s commitment to the wildlife management model that works best. FWC Chair Rodney Barreto deserves special thanks for his leadership, as do the other commissioners. Also, FWC staff, led by Chief Conservation Officer George Warthen, deserve our appreciation for their scientific rigor and for the patience with which they presented the science and options.

Last, the hunting community should be commended for the class and respect that we demonstrated throughout the process. Here’s to our right to hunt and fish responsibly, and to working with Florida officials and other stakeholders productively to conserve more essential fish and wildlife habitats.

Terry Gibson is a professional hunter and professional conservation advocate with extensive experience across fish & wildlife management, ecosystem resilience, and water management. Terry served in various editorial capacities at Florida Sportsman between 2000 and 2008.

North American Model of Wildlife Management (A.K.A. the Seven Sisters)

Wildlife resources are conserved and held in trust for all citizens.
Commerce in dead wildlife is eliminated.
Wildlife is allocated according to democratic rule of law.
Wildlife may only be killed for a legitimate, non-frivolous purpose.
Wildlife is an international resource.
Every person has an equal opportunity under the law to participate in hunting and fishing.
Scientific management is the proper means for wildlife conservation.