Overview

• FWC said it received 163,459 applications during the Sept. 12–22 window and will award 172 permits by random draw for the Dec. 6–28 season.
• The 2025 plan bars killing cubs or females with cubs, allows baiting on private land, permits bowhunting under deer-like rules, and creates private-land harvest programs for large properties.
• Several groups, including the Sierra Club, Bear Defenders and Speak Up Wekiva, urged supporters to apply for tags they do not intend to use, and separate lawsuits seek to block the hunt.
• State officials estimate about 4,000 black bears in Florida, with supporters calling hunting a management tool as critics point to habitat loss and human encroachment as the drivers of conflicts.
• Applications were heaviest in the southwest and central zones, which have quotas of 55 and 18 and the longest odds, while the east Panhandle offers 68 permits with the best chances.