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FWC: Seminole County bear conflicts down after ordinance, education and trash interventions; public input sought on regulated hunt options
Summary
Florida Fish and Wildlife reported lower bear conflict calls in Seminole County for 2024 compared with a decade earlier. The agency praised local ordinances, trash-can programs and outreach; it will hold stakeholder meetings and a virtual public webinar as part of a fact-finding phase on options for a regulated bear hunt.
Mike Orlando, bear management program coordinator with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, told the Seminole County Board of County Commissioners on March 11 that most bear calls in the Northeast region are general sightings, not actionable conflicts, and that Seminole County has seen a marked decline in problem calls after ordinances, education and trash-management efforts.
Orlando said the agency received about 2,600 calls across the Northeast region in 2024 and that Seminole County accounted for 308 of those calls, which ranks the county eighth in the region. "This is actually gonna be relatively short. And the reason for that is because, you guys are doing an amazing job," Orlando said during the annual update.
Why it matters: Commissioners and staff said the drop in garbage-related calls and core complaints reflects local investments in bear-resistant measures and public education. The county’s experience is being cited as a model by other states and counties, Orlando said.
Key points from the update - Call types and thresholds: Orlando said the majority of 2024 calls were general interactions (sightings). The FWC bear management plan aims to keep "core complaints" — incidents such as bears getting into garbage or enclosures — under 50% of calls; Seminole County has met that guideline. - Trends and numbers: Orlando noted Seminole County once received several hundred bear conflict calls annually; current numbers—about 308 in 2024—are substantially lower than a decade ago. By contrast, Marion County had 779 calls in the same period. - Enforcement and illegal feeding: Commissioners asked about illegal activity. Orlando said most enforcement reports relate to feeding bears or violating the Florida Administrative Code provisions that prohibit placing garbage or attractants where bears are likely to be fed. - Relocation and recidivism: Orlando explained relocation is used selectively and that male bears have average home ranges of roughly 60 square miles and female bears about 15 square miles; relocated animals may return or be replaced by other bears unless attractants are removed.
Public engagement on a regulated hunt Orlando said FWC is in a fact-finding phase on options for reopening a regulated bear hunt, at the request of FWC commissioners after a five-year update. The agency convened a Bear Stakeholder Group and technical advisory meetings and scheduled a virtual public webinar to collect public input (a listening session) covering season timing, allowable methods, harvest limits and locations. Orlando emphasized the agency is currently gathering options, not making recommendations.
Board comments Commissioner Lockhart asked staff to reexamine trash-hauler schedules after finding haulers pick up later in the day, which may expose cans to bears; Commissioner Constantine urged residents not to feed bears and thanked residents who adopted recommended practices. Commissioners praised the county’s education and trash-can initiatives for reducing conflicts.
No formal board action was taken; FWC will continue stakeholder engagement and said it would return with options to its commissioners.
