The rule defines an “enclosure” as an area of land enclosed in such a manner as to prevent the natural ingress or egress of a fox or coyote

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved a final rule Sept. 1 permanently prohibiting the chasing of foxes and coyotes with dogs within an enclosure in Florida.

The FWC has worked on this issue for more than a year, and the practice was temporarily prohibited in February.

Maj. Curtis Brown, head of the FWC’s Captive Wildlife and Investigations Section, presented the final rule and provided some options for hunters.

“Coyotes and certain other nonprotected furbearers can still be taken year-round using several methods, including dogs,” Brown said. “This can occur on open private lands and in specific wildlife management areas.”

The rule defines an “enclosure” as an area of land enclosed in such a manner as to prevent the natural ingress or egress of a fox or coyote.

“This is not about taking away hunting opportunities,” said Chairman Rodney Barreto. “I’m a big believer in fair chase, and I have a list of places where hunters can still engage in those activities.”
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Posted under Hunting

Classes to be held at Gulf Coast Community College

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is offering a free hunter safety course in Bay County.

The course will be conducted at Gulf Coast Community College in the second floor lecture hall of the Student Union East building, 5230 West U.S. Hwy. 98 in Panama City.  Instruction will be from 6-9 p.m. Sept. 7, 9, 21 and 23.  The range portion of the class will be Sept. 28 from 7-11 a.m.

People who have taken the Internet course and wish to complete the classroom portion must bring the online-completion report and attend only the Sept. 7 class from 6-10 p.m. and the Sept. 25 range day.

An adult must accompany children under the age of 16 at all times.  Students should bring a pencil and paper with them to take notes.

Successful completion of an approved hunter safety course is required for everyone born on or after June 1, 1975, before they can purchase a Florida hunting license.  The FWC course satisfies hunter safety training requirements for all other states and Canadian provinces.
People interested in attending this course can register online and obtain information about future hunter safety classes at MyFWC.com/HunterSafety or by calling the FWC’s regional office in Panama City at 850-265-3676.

Posted under Hunting

Classes to be held at Extension Office

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is offering a free hunter safety course in Okaloosa County. The course will be at the Okaloosa County Extension Office, 5479 Old Bethel Rd., in Crestview.  Instruction will be from 6-9 p.m. Sept. 6, 7, 8 and 9.  The range portion of the class will be Sept. 11 from 8-11 a.m.

An adult must accompany children under age 16 at all times.  Students should bring a pencil and paper with them to take notes.
The hunter safety course is required before anyone born on or after June 1, 1975, can purchase a Florida hunting license.  The FWC course satisfies hunter-safety training requirements for all other states and Canadian provinces.

People interested in attending this course can register online and obtain information about future hunter safety classes at MyFWC.com/HunterSafety or by calling the FWC’s regional office in Panama City at 850-265-3676.

Posted under Hunting

Jarhead and a sibling elude biologists trying to capture it. Photo courtesy FWC

Black bear cub in Marion County recovers from sticky situation

It took 10 days for Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) biologists to catch a black bear cub in Marion County that was days away from death. They were ultimately successful, but it took extraordinary efforts from both FWC employees and local residents working together.

The 6-month-old cub, its two siblings and mother were regular visitors to unsecured trash containers in a small community near Weirsdale, in the Ocala National Forest. One day in late July, FWC dispatch got a call from one of the residents concerned about a cub running around with a clear, industrial-size plastic jar stuck on its head. The jar made it almost impossible for the cub to eat or drink.

The FWC’s Mike Orlando, Brian Scheick and Cathy Connolly, and Mike Connolly, a bear-response agent for the agency, knew that if they didn’t catch the cub, affectionately dubbed “Jarhead,” it would die, so they developed a plan to trap it.
“It was a lot easier said than done,” Orlando said. “The residents were really great about calling us when they saw the bears, but it seemed like we were always about 20 minutes behind.”
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Posted under Nature

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is offering a free hunter safety course in Bay County.

The course will be conducted at Gulf Coast Community College in the second floor lecture hall of the Student Union East building, 5230 West U.S. Hwy. 98 in Panama City.  Instruction will be from 6-9 p.m. Aug. 17, 19, 24 and 26.  The range portion of the class will be Aug. 28 from 7-11 a.m.

People who have taken the Internet course and wish to complete the classroom portion must bring the online-completion report and attend only the Aug. 17 class from 6-10 p.m. and the Aug. 28 range day.

An adult must accompany children under the age of 16 at all times.  Students should bring a pencil and paper with them to take notes. Read More…

Posted under Hunting

Tony Young's an avid sportsman and native Floridian. He's the media relations coordinator for the FWC's Division of Hunting and Game Management and lives in Tallahassee with his family.

Now is the time to start preparing for hunting season

Outta The Woods

With the dog days of summer upon us, it’s hard to think about hunting.  But if you’re between the ages of 16 and 35, and haven’t yet taken the state’s hunter safety class – now’s just the time to be thinking about it.  Many of these classes, offered statewide, fill up fast during hunting season while people scramble to get certified.  Summer months offer smaller class sizes and make for a better opportunity for students to attend, because they often have more free time.

Everyone 16 years old or older and born after May 31, 1975, must complete the FWC’s hunter safety requirement before they can buy a Florida hunting license.

There is an exception though.  A law passed a few years ago allows individuals to hunt under the supervision of a licensed hunter, 21 years old or older, without having to complete the state’s hunter safety certification.

It’s called the “Hunter Safety Deferral,” and it enables those persons to purchase a Florida hunting license and hunt on a one-year trial basis.  It’s designed to encourage experienced hunters to teach novice hunters about our sport and is a great incentive for getting more people to give hunting a try.  Individuals taking advantage of this would have to pass a hunter safety class to be eligible to buy a license and hunt the following year.
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Posted under Hunting

Species of lobster found in Florida (left to right): Caribbean spiny lobster, smooth tail spiny lobster, spotted spiny lobster. Photo courtesy FWC

Special two day season July 28-29, followed by regular season Aug. 6-Mar. 31

Recreational and commercial harvest seasons for spiny lobster in Florida reopen soon.  The special two-day spiny lobster sport season comes first, July 28-29 this year, followed by the regular commercial and recreational lobster season, Aug. 6 – March 31.

The special two-day sport season occurs on the last consecutive Wednesday and Thursday in July each year to let recreational fishermen collect spiny lobsters before commercial lobster traps are placed in the water.  Commercial fishermen may begin putting traps in the water Aug. 1, and recreational and commercial fishermen may harvest spiny lobsters starting Aug. 6.

Spiny lobsters must have a carapace length greater than 3 inches to be legal take during open seasons, and divers must possess a measuring device and measure all lobsters in the water.
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Posted under Eco tourism adventure, Fishing

South Walton Turtle Watch volunteers Jennifer Jones and Bobby Stuart excavate a loggerhead turtle nest July 26. ©Lori Ceier/Walton Outdoors

South Walton Turtle Watch Group assists USFWS, NOAA and FWC in relocation program

It was a busy morning on South Walton beaches July 26 as South Walton Turtle Watch assisted U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration biologists in relocating sea turtle nests.

The nests are being relocated to the east coast to ensure the sea turtle hatchlings do not encounter oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The eggs are removed within a week of hatching from the nest, placed in coolers with dampened sand from the nest, transported in a specially designed, temperature-controlled truck to the east coast. The eggs are then held under monitored conditions until the hatchlings emerge. When they hatch, they are being released into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Canaveral.
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Posted under Beaches, Environment, Nature

Hunters without Internet access can pick up permits at county tax collectors’ office

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) wants to make hunters aware that beginning this year, quota permits for general gun, archery, muzzleloading gun, family, youth, airboat and track will not be mailed out to successful applicants as they have been in the past.

Instead, the FWC is allowing hunters, who are awarded permits in the random drawings, to print the quota permits by going to www.fl.wildlifelicense.com and choosing “Limited Entry/Quota then Pickup/Pay for Awarded Permit.”  For detailed instructions on how to do this, go to MyFWC.com/Hunting and click “Limited Entry Hunts,” then “How to Print Your Limited Entry Hunt Permit Directly from the Website.” Read More…

Posted under Hunting

The new permit costs $5 and is available now for purchase

Beginning with the upcoming 2010-2011 hunting season, anyone hunting deer in Florida will need a deer permit.

Those with a Sportsman’s License, Gold Sportsman’s License, 64 or Older Sportsman’s License, Military Gold Sportsman’s License, Lifetime Hunting License or Lifetime Sportsman’s License will not need to purchase the new deer permit, because it already is included in each of these licenses, even if they were purchased before July 1.
However, the deer permit is not included with a hunting license, combination hunting/freshwater fishing license, combination hunting/freshwater/saltwater license or a five-year hunting license. Anyone hunting deer with either of these licenses must also buy the $5 deer permit to hunt deer legally.

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Posted under Hunting