Over the weekend the controversial hunt of black bears in Florida was called off after almost two days because so many bears were killed; our guest on WMNF’s MidPoint was Tampa Bay Times staff writer Craig Pittman, who witnessed part of the hunt from a station in Central Florida.
The bear hunt was supposed to last a week. As of Sunday night 295 bears had been killed. That number was increased to 298 Monday afternoon. There was a total limit of 320. Hunting was allowed in four different bear management units. In the Central Florida unit, more bears were killed than the limit permitted. In the eastern Panhandle nearly three times the limit of bears were killed.
We talked about how there could be more bears killed than the “limit” in a particular area and how the limit is enforced.
It’s possible that the number of killed bears might still increase because hunters have 12 hours to get animals to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission checkpoint.
The FWC sold more permits (3,378) than the latest estimate of the bear population (3,300). It took in $376,900 from the sale of permits. FWC commissioners are appointed by the governor.
Hunters took steps days and weeks before the hunt to prepare.
Continue reading below or listen to the whole show here:
https://soundcloud.com/wmnf/bearhunt1026
Until 2012 black bears were on the state’s imperiled species list. We looked at whether there is a reliable population estimate for bears in Florida and why there was a hunt before the latest numbers were in. We also touched on the role of suburban development in bear-human interactions.
The fact that this was the first bear hunt in Florida in 21 years may have affected the behavior of black bears with respect to hunters.
6 Responses to “A look back at Florida’s shortened black bear hunt”
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We need to make sure that the developers, contractors, lawyers, and ranchers who are the FWC Commissioners will not get another opportunity to hurt our wildlife, our environment, and our tourism industry. We need FWC Commissioners who are scientists, environmentalists, and members of the tourism industry. If you agree, please sign and share widely: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/723/207/641/
I am fairly certain that they took information from people in the field such as wildlife biologists in FWC employ to determine the status of the bear population as near as they could. Do you have proof and links to show that the FWC is comprised of ONLY what you say they are? Maybe they could model themselves after the DEC in NY….oh wait a minute….you would probably disagree with them also.
The information you are asking for is widely available; you can easily find it yourself. But, to make life a little bit easier for you, here is the link to the FWC Commissioners. Click on their names and, voila, you will find their bios: http://myfwc.com/about/commission/commissioners/
Next, this article clearly shows that the FWC did NOT have any idea how many black bears were out there. Their own scientists told them this trophy hunt is not a good idea because they did not expect the finish the population count before next year. Here a link to that, but there are many other articles out there that basically state the same thing. http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/article41385834.html
BTW, since you put your trust so blindly in the FWC, what do you think of the attached pic? That was supposed to be illegal, but ,according to monitor eye witness accounts, it happened quite a bit this weekend. And no, the FWC field biologists rarely stopped hunters from taking home cubs illegally slaughtered. Those cubs were so little, they fit in coolers. It takes a depraved human being to stoop this low.
Why thank you…as a matter of fact, I had already known the bios of these people…as I visit the FWC site quite regularly, being a law abiding sportsman. I must assume you missed all the other activities some have been involved in, all geared towards conservation. I also must assume that you believe no input was considered as far as wildlife biologists and wildlife experts, to conduct a detailed field inquiry concerning the FL black bears….which would be severely and sadly mistaken.
Next, to stay in keeping with your ‘holier than thou’ attitude, there is no probable way to have a totally ‘accurate’ count of any..and I do mean ANY…wildlife unless it is in captivity, so your statement (and of course, the article…seeing as it is a one sided diatribe anyway) is false. And, to tell you the truth, there was no ‘trophy’ hunt, as most hunters I know use as much of the harvested animal as they can.I can read ANY article that is biased, in whatever way the author wants to place their bias, and it still does not PROVE what has been said. Documentation is the bread and butter of proof….of which you have not shown.
BTW….a photo shows no documentation, that shows the foolishness of your argument….do you realize how big that cooler actually is? I bet you have no idea….do you know how much that BEAR weighed? I have this certain feeling you have no idea. Do you know how old that BEAR was? I am willing to bet you have no idea.
You put your trust, as can be evidenced, in some fairy tale convolution of the truth, by what I see.
Now here is the true facts of conservation, and if you don’t know anything about how it works, I suggest (because you are just sooo good at finding “evidence”??) and acting like you might even KNOW something….here is an example…a link will follow…in NY state, 40 to 50 years ago, you would be hard pressed to find a black bear, as they only lived in a few small pockets of population.Through careful management and hunting, they now are established and thriving, with a count between 6 to 8 thousand bears, and a dramatic rise in sightings even in the county I was raised in where we NEVER saw a bear. Even still, there is a difference of 2 thousand,because, as I said earlier….there is no way to have a totally accurate count on a wild animal.
http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6960.html
Bear hunting is bear management. Bear management involves bear hunting. It is clear that is a true statement, no matter where you are. That is a true statement, and it has been PROVEN it works. It is called conservation of resources (yes, I majored in that back in college years ago) here is proof if you dare browse around the DEC site and learn something. You see, conservation and hunting go hand in hand for the benefit of the animal. First, you must know what you are talking about. Second, put aside your emotions and use what God gave you, a brain and good judgement.
I do live in FL now, perhaps the FWC could take some pointers from the DEC.
The problem is, I do not think anything will satisfy you.
Wow, I really hit some buttons there.
First, not sure how you deduct a “holier than thou” attitude by my simple statement to look for information online rather than asking me to do your work.
Second, you should have taken a closer look at the cooler before you blew a fuse. The icepack that is peeking out of the cooler is one of the 10 lb ice packs you can buy at any convenience store. And yes, I spoke to several of the “hunt” monitors at the check stations, and this is what they observed. But, of course, for somebody like you those monitors are simply liars.
Third, I actually do know a lot about conservation. My father was a forest ranger. Unlike you, however, he loved “his” wildlife and did not kill anything unless the animal was severely hurt. He was a great man, and would have never gained pleasure from killing another sentient being. But this is a concept that you obviously do not understand. You seem to believe that gunning down another sentient being is fun. If you really have a degree in conservation, then you should be familiar with all the research that has shown that animals are sentient, that they experience the same range of emotions as we do, and that it is becoming harder and harder to justify to kill these amazing beings (and yes, I am vegan; no hypocrisy here).
Fourth, you insist that the information published by the FWC is unbiased. Sorry, for somebody who has worked extensively with the information provided by “wildlife agencies,” I know as a fact that this is not true. This is kind of telling me that I should believe the spin put out by Canada’s DFO about the Annual Canadian Seal “Hunt.” Of course, they are only going to publish material that supports the view of the “hook and bullet” guys.
Fifth, if you really had a degree in conservation, then you would know that the management of most species does NOT involve hunting anymore. Many first-world countries by now are shifting to nonlethal population control. Public opinion is shifting against you. The boycotts of Florida tourism organized specifically in Germany and the UK are going to hurt a lot of people in our state. Trust me, Floridians whose livelihood depends on the money brought here by the 93.7 million tourists we counted last year, will not be pleased with your kindred. As soon as the power of the boycotts start hurting Florida, you people will be shut down anyways.
And finally, even the co-founder of Central Florida’s Bear Hunters Association was against the hunt.
So, and now I need to focus my attention to stopping these slaughters once and for all. Comment if you wish on what I wrote, but be aware that I will not answer. And no, that has nothing to do with being “high and mighty,” it has to do with being a very busy person who needs to manage her time. Besides, there are worlds between us; we will never come to an agreement.
Actually, no “buttons were hit” as you so preposterously proclaim. I do see I got your knickers in a knot…that is fairly obvious.
FIRST – The holier than thou attitude shines through in your response, however it starts with this – But, to make life a little bit easier for you – alludes to I do not know how to do research on this subject, which I have already done before I ever saw this mockery of political postulation. Do my work for me? HA! I have no need for you to do anything for me…I asked what PROOF you had to show, that is all. If you have no proof, you do not have a leg to stand on. I still see no proof.
SECOND – I did not blow a fuse, again, there you go with the first (attitude)…such a silly girl. From the photo, there is no way to tell that is a ‘ten pound ice pack’ as you would like everyone to believe. You do realize you can also buy a twenty pound ice pack also? I never said the ‘monitors’ were liars at all…(there you go with assumptions again)…what I said was this – a photo shows no documentation, that shows the foolishness of your argument….do you realize how big that cooler actually is? I bet you have no idea….do you know how much that BEAR weighed? I have this certain feeling you have no idea. Do you know how old that BEAR was? I am willing to bet you have no idea. – and still, you do not answer the questions.
That tells me you are a liar…and have NO IDEA how big that cooler is.
THIRD – You say you know a lot about conservation….because your Dad was a Forest Ranger? Wow…that is like saying I know a lot about medicine because my Dad works in a hospital. Just so you know, that is a comparison only, not actual. Having a degree in Conservation does not automatically mean anyone who is educated in that field is against harvesting animals. If you knew ANYTHING about conservation, you would understand this….conservation means keeping a balance. I am sure you would much rather see a bear or deer starve and suffer from disease because there are too many animals for the ecosystem to support. Talk about justification…what gives you the right to say harvesting an animal has to be ‘justified’ to YOUR expectations?
Remember… Everyday, thousands of innocent plants are killed by vegetarians – help end the violence!
FOURTH – If you claim the FWC information is biased, untrue, and not sound, show me the proof…if you have worked extensively with the information and can PROVE that the FWC is biased, PLEASE do so and show it here. I mean, you must know about the FOIA and how you can get information…oh…but the ‘extensive’ work you have done with the information, which, BTW, someone else I have spoken to could not get ANY information from the FWC over the phone….so how did you get your information…is it Top Secret, and that is why you cannot show it…or is it that you take what the media tells you and cherry pick what works for your agenda? If you have the information, show it to me…ever think that might help the dilemma you are in, or are you concerned it won’t match up with the truth of the matter? I am only asking, to see if you publish only the information that spins your agenda, as you so blatantly accuse your nemesis of.
FIFTH – I really do have a degree in Conservation and Natural Resources Conservation, and one of the subjects I studied WAS wildlife management, and we had discussions specifically ABOUT harvesting animals, discussing DEC changes in hunting seasons and many more aspects you more than likely have no idea about. Public opinion is not shifting against me, my friends, the hunting community, conservation or management of resources. Boycotts? LOL…you really are insane, if you think anything is going to be ‘shutdown’. Anyone that says ‘trust me’ is to be seriously NOT trusted.
You’ll not stop anything. I have faith in that. Whether you answer or not is of no concern to me, as you only wish to control what others do, not for the sake of conservation, only for the sake of yourself, your views and your wishes. You may think you are worldly and are working to make the world a better place for everything….except plants…but you are not. You are not working for conservation. You are working against it.