ORLANDO, Fla. – Starting this weekend, hunters will be able to hunt Florida’s black bears , provided they have a permit.

From Dec. 6 through Dec. 28, hunters who received a permit will be able to harvest black bears on private property, with permission of the property owner, and in specified Bear Harvest Zones, which are located within four of Florida’s Bear Management Units.

The state issued 172 permits through a lottery system. Each permit entitles the hunter to kill one bear during the hunting period.

However, the hunt may not lead to 172 bears being killed.

Groups against the hunt attempted to reduce hunting numbers by buying entries into the lottery system.

[WATCH: Non-hunters snagged at least 44 Florida bear hunt permits, records show]

A News 6 analysis found that at least

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