Florida bear hunt: 52 black bears killed, FWC says

Florida bear hunt: 52 black bears killed, FWC says

A total of 52 black bears in Florida were harvested during the 2025 bear hunt, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said.

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission released initial numbers from the 2025 Bear Hunt, the first bear hunt in Florida after nearly a decade.

According to numbers released by FWC, a total of 52 black bears were harvested within the four Bear Hunting Zones. A total of 172 permits were issued.

In a news release, the FWC noted a "harvest success rate" similar to other states with comparable hunt guidelines.

FWC Executive Director Roger Young described this year's bear hunt as a success, "rooted in sound scientific data."

By the numbers:

- 2025 Bear Hunt Dates: Dec. 6-28, 2025

- Total permits: 172

- Total bears harvested: 52

- Total Bear Harvest Zones: 4

- Estimated Florida black bear population: 4,000

What they're saying:

FWC Executive Director Roger Young described this year's hunt as a success, "rooted in sound scientific data." 

"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 a prepared statement.

"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."

"Hunting is an effective tool for managing wildlife populations around the world and is a key part of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation," said FWC Chief Conservation Officer George Warthen in a news release. "It’s about helping bears succeed over the long term in our state and is a way for us to guide an iconic Florida species into the future, for their benefit and ours."

The backstory:

Florida allowed regulated bear hunting from the 1930s through 1994, then halted it until briefly reopening in 2015. That season ended early when harvest objectives were met faster than expected, triggering controversy and legal challenges. 

In December 2024, commissioners asked FWC staff to develop options for a potential hunt. Proposed rules were released in May 2025 and approved in August, clearing the way for the 2025 season.

The shift to a limited number of permits reflects lessons from 2015, when unlimited permit sales led to intense pressure on hunters to take the first available bear. 

FWC now ties permit totals to the maximum number of female bears that could be removed without decreasing populations—an approach the agency calls more conservative and science-driven.

The lead-up to the 2025 Bear Hunt pitted the FWC and bear management experts, who argued the bear hunt was necessary to manage the population, against wildlife activists and organizations who argued the hunt was unnecessary. Lawsuits were filed and dismissed. 

Bear advocates offer $2K to not hunt black bears

As black bear hunting season approaches in Florida, from Dec. 6 to 28, Bear Hunters is now offering hunters $1,000 for hunters not to participate in the hunt. Bear Hunters United, who recently lost a lawsuit when they wanted to prevent the first black bear hunt in 10 years, matched the $1,000, bringing the total to $2,000.

Bear advocates pay $30,000 to encourage hunters not to use permit

The other side:

Ahead of the start of the 2025 Bear Hunt, wildlife activists pledged to pay thousands of dollars to hunters to encourage them not to use their bear permit. One organization offered $2,000 per permit.

After the FWC released the results of the bear hunt, Bear Warriors United, an organization who was strongly against the hunt and filed unsuccessful lawsuits in its fight, said it would honor the 52 bears killed, but celebrated the "low kill numbers."

"Bear Warriors United is ecstatic that less than a third of the bear killing tags were utilized," said Executive Director Katrina Shadix in a statement.

"The low kill numbers are a result of bear hunting being wildly unpopular with Floridians, in addition to the poaching crisis, massive loss of habitat to development, and over 300 vehicle strikes killing off Florida black bears at an unsustainable rate – pushing bears faster and faster toward Extinction."

Shadix said her organization paid 14 hunters a total of $31,000 not to use their bear tag.