01Are there bears in Florida?
Yes. The Florida black bear is the only bear in the state, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimates there are about 4,050 of them.
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What should I do if I see a bear?
Stay calm and do not go toward it. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says that if your being there changes what the bear is doing, you are too close.
Stand upright, speak to the bear in a calm, firm voice, and back away slowly toward a car, a building or another safe place. Do not run: running can set off a bear's urge to chase, and bears can run up to 35 miles an hour. Do not play dead or climb a tree. If a bear attacks, fight back hard.
On a trail in bear country, make noise as you walk so you do not surprise one, and think about carrying bear pepper spray. Whatever happens, do not run.
Around the house, bears come for food. Keep garbage in a shed, a garage or a wildlife-resistant can, and put it out on the morning of pickup, not the night before. Feeding bears is illegal: to report someone feeding or drawing bears in, call the commission's Wildlife Alert Hotline, 888-404-3922. If a bear is causing you trouble, call the commission's regional office: Northeast, in Ocala, 352-732-1225; Northwest, 850-265-3676; North Central, 386-758-0525; Southwest, 863-648-3200; South, 561-625-5122.
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02What should I do if I see an alligator?
Keep your distance and leave it alone. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says to keep a safe distance from any alligator you see and never to handle one, even a small one.
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03What snakes live in Florida?
About fifty native kinds, and only six of them are venomous: the eastern coral snake, the southern copperhead, the cottonmouth, the eastern diamondback rattlesnake, the timber rattlesnake and the dusky pygmy rattlesnake.
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04Where is the hiking in Florida?
The long one is the Florida National Scenic Trail, about 1,500 miles from Big Cypress National Preserve in the south to Gulf Islands National Seashore at the western end of the Panhandle.
Read the answer →Where this comes from.
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, if you encounter a bear ↗ Read October 24, 2026
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, recreating in bear country ↗ Read October 24, 2026
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, living with Florida black bears ↗ Read October 24, 2026
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, regional offices ↗ Read October 24, 2026
More questions like this.
What should I do if I see an alligator?
Keep your distance and leave it alone. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says to keep a safe distance from any alligator you see and never to handle one, even a small one.
Which Florida beaches have the sunset?
Any beach on the Gulf coast faces west, so the sun goes down into the water the length of that shore.
Which Florida beaches have the sunrise?
The whole Atlantic coast, from Amelia Island down to Key Biscayne. The ones worth setting an alarm for are the undeveloped stretches, where nothing stands between the dune and the horizon.
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