Tragically, it seems, Florida officials learned all the wrong lessons from the black bear hunt that saw the slaughter of at least 304 animals in the space of a few days a decade ago.
This year’s hunt was far less destructive, but it’s premature for state officials to call it a success. Certainly, the hunt wasn’t a “success” from the standpoint of the bears that were killed and the majority of Floridians repulsed by the hunt.
The latest hunt ended Sunday. Grim lessons were on display:
1. The hunt was less visible. In 2015, the state had check-in stations where hunters brought their bears to be tallied. This year, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission eliminated them, avoiding the spectacle of bloody carcasses and stifling the ability of wildlife advocates to monitor the hunt in real time. This deliberately obscures the possibility that some victims were lactating female bears — and for every dead mother, there was probably at least one cub in danger of dying from starvation.
2. Sketchy, old data. The last time the FWC officially counted bear noses was in 2015, when it came up with a population estimate of 4,000. This time, hunting advocates took to social media to claim that the number of bears was probably higher. But the FWC’s own scientists said a year ago that populations were still lower than needed to maintain genetic bear diversity in three of seven geographic “subpopulation” areas. The state-sanctioned curriculum on Florida’s black bear population says this: “Remind students that the two most significant human-caused factors affecting bear populations in Florida are loss of habitat due to development and road kills on highways that pass through areas of bear habitat.” Those threats remain. In fact, the state estimates that vehicles kill about 300 bears a year.
3. Withhold death details. As reported by the FWC, the number of bears killed this year was far less than anyone expected: 52, not the 172 originally suggested. But critical details are missing, such as how many males and females were killed, where they were taken, and whether any females appeared to be pregnant or nursing. An FWC spokesperson said a “full harvest report will be released in the coming months.” It might take some time to uncover the narrative behind the unexpectedly low number of bears killed, but the basic information should be made available sooner, for all sides to prepare for coming court challenges and the discussion of a 2026 hunt.
Bear Warriors United, an advocacy group in Central Florida, sued the state to stop this bear hunt based on the lack of adequate scientific evidence. A judge refused to stop it, but he didn’t reach a decision on the lawsuit’s underlying merits. That battle is yet to come.
Politics over science
The Human World for Animals (formerly Humane Society of the United States) filed a brief in opposition to the hunt, said attorney Clay Henderson, arguing the decision was swayed by politics at the expense of science.
That drew this response: “The Commission’s attorneys argued there was no requirement for them to follow science as they were fully empowered to manage wildlife as they see fit,” Henderson said. “Stay tuned. This battle isn’t over.”
If FWC officials really think they did the right thing and that this hunt was a success, there’s no reason to hide details of the hunt. The longer they stall, the more suspicions they raise.
Was there another slaughter of nursing mothers? Did some bears meet death due to particularly brutal methods?
No matter what happened, the FWC owes it to the public to disclose the basic data — and to reconsider plans for more hunts in coming years, knowing none of their dodge-and-cover tactics lessened the blunt expressions of public disgust from the majority of Floridians who weighed in on this smaller slaughter.
This editorial first appeared in the Orlando Sentinel. The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Opinion Editor Steve Bousquet, Deputy Opinion Editor Dan Sweeney, editorial writers Pat Beall and Martin Dyckman and Executive Editor Gretchen Day-Bryant. Contact us at letters@sun-sentinel.com.
