A black bear in Florida (Florida Fish and Wildlife, Tim Donovan/FWC) TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – For the first time in a decade, hunters armed with rifles and crossbows are fanning out across Florida’s swamps ...

Trees hang over a boardwalk in the Black Bear Wilderness Area on Dec. 23, 2025. The seven-mile hiking trail, located in Seminole County, is a popular spot to sight the elusive Florida black bear. Most ...

Most people who won permits to participate in the first Florida black bear hunt since 2015 came away empty-handed. Jeff Nemeth wasn't one of them - he and his son killed a 503-pound bear on a private ...

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has released the results of the state’s first black bear hunt in a decade — one which drew legal action and protests.

Florida's first black bear hunt in ten years is scheduled to begin on December 6, pending a court challenge. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission issued 187 permits for the hunt, ...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — For the first time in a decade, hunters armed with rifles and crossbows are fanning out across Florida's swamps and flatwoods to legally hunt the Florida black bear, over the ...