So far the commission has sold 2,360 licenses to hunt bears, a major payday for the agency since each license for a Florida resident costs $100 and the ones for out-of-state hunters, such as rocker Ted Nugent, cost $300.
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That means, he said, the only people who can stop this year’s hunt are Scott and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission executive director Nick Wiley.
An enviornmental group called “Speak Up Wekiva” is trying to stop the hunt from happening. (Currently the FWC is relying in data from 2002 bear counts, though a fresh count is underway and would be more complete next year.) The hunt will allow 320 bears to be killed.
No word yet from Speak Up Wekiva on what its next move will be.
A judge could decide whether or not the bear hunt will go on as scheduled.
“The commission is making every effort that it can to address all of the concerns of those who would like to hunt on a recreational basis and those who believe that the population must be managed”. In a South region, which includes Broward, Collier, Hendry, Lee, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Palm Beach counties, the quota number is 80.
Diane Eggeman oversees hunting and game management at the state agency. Both said the rules for the hunt, including permitting, are based on experience in other states that have similar hunt rules – such as prohibiting unleashed dogs – and have shown a “relatively low” success rate for hunters. Permits can be purchased up until the day before the hunt.
Reynolds listened to testimony from wildlife biologists for the state and the environmental group Speak Up Wekieva for more than four hours, frequently interrupting to ask his own questions.
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The FWC has OK’d the killing of 320 bears this month. Bears were listed as threatened from 1974 until 2012.
