In the summer of 2015, the Florida Fishing and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved Florida's first black bear hunt in 21 years. The decision caused public outrage -- only three years earlier black bears were still considered a threatened species in Florida – but to no end. The FWC decided to issue hunting permits in earnest and, over the last few months, sold 3,778 of them, roughly equivalent to 12 hunters per bear. Their claim that these hunts were a legitimate effort to keep the newly burgeoning bear population - now estimated to be around 3,500 - in check fell on deaf ears. More than 40,000 people petitioned the FWC to stop the hunting. They claimed that the agency did not have the necessary data to oversee a scientifically responsible hunt and that too many licenses were sold. The hunting season proceeded as planned. When Fusion's environmental unit heard the news, we decided to investigate.
Nicolás Ibargüen, Fusion's environmental correspondent, takes a close look at Florida's first black bear hunt in more than two decades. In this ten minute documentary, he shadows two hunters as they go inside Ocala's National Forest to pursue their prey.
We began by contacting everyone involved, from people who had purchased permits, to environmental activists who were opposed to the hunt, to one FWC commissioner who had voted in favor of the hunt and then purchased a license of her own. After lots of back and forth during fraught times, we managed to gain the trust of two hunters who were willing to let us join their hunt. We headed to Ocala National Forest, where most hunts take place, to witness and document what we saw. Saturday October 24th was a foggy morning. It was the first day of a hunt, which was originally planned to last a week. Hunters spread across four areas in Florida, with quota numbers based on a population census that hadn't been completely updated since 2002. The hunters in the Central Florida area where we were reporting were allowed a harvest total of a hundred bears, and so, after they killed 143 on the first day, the area had to be closed to further hunting. Rodolfo, the hunter we shadowed, was one of the hunters who caught a black bear, an 182-pound female. He killed her in one shot straight to her chest. He then took her to the check station to have her registered before he took ownership of the body. He told us he would make steak and hamburgers with the flesh, and a rug with the skin. Although he had previous experience at shooting ranges, this was Rodolfo's first real life hunt and he assured us this was a trophy for him. Like Rodolfo, 298 other hunters got their trophies. We also interviewed environmentalist and hunt opponent Chuck O'Neal, who organized a group of two hundred volunteers to monitor the hunt and make sure the rules were being followed. These included: no bait or hunting dogs, female bears accompanied by cubs could not be targeted, and neither could specimens weighting under 100 pounds. However, according to the FWC, two cubs ended up being killed during the season. The hunter responsible for killing one 88-pound cub only received a warning for his actions. Another hunter who shot a 42- pound cub received a citation. Florida's first black bear hunt in 21 years wrapped up in late October, after two days of intense hunting. While it was originally planned to last a week, the 320-bear quota was nearly met in two days after 298 bears were killed.
In this vivid and compelling documentary, Fusion's environmental correspondent, Nicolás Ibargüen, examines the controversial and highly emotional subject of bear hunting, and presents a clear and illuminating picture of what's at stake.
This year, the FWC announced that it would postpone the 2016 bear hunt.
