Four Wolves Taken in First 24 Hours of the Wisconsin Wolf Hunt
OutdoorHub Reporters 10.16.12
Despite a lawsuit and petition for a temporary injunction, the Wisconsin wolf season officially opened on October 15. In the first 24 hours, four wolves were successfully harvested by four separate hunters.
The first reported harvest was a male wolf taken at 7:15 a.m. on Monday morning in Rusk County. Then, by 8:30 a.m., a female was taken. Another female was taken at 4:30 p.m. and a male at 6:15 p.m. The wolves were taken in Vilas County, Iron County and Eau Claire County, respectively.
The hunt is scheduled to continue until February 26, but it is likely to end by mid-November if the rate of wolves harvested stays the same. Only 116 wolves are allowed to be harvested by that time and the hunt will officially be over once that number is reached.
There are also zone limits to abide by. Once a zone limit is reached, even if the wolf harvest limit for the entire state is not reached, there may be no more wolves taken in that zone. According to the Associated Press, “as of Tuesday morning, hunters could still kill 31 wolves in the far northwest, 19 in the far northeast, 17 in the mid-northwest, 22 in the central, 5 in the mid-northeast and 18 in the south.”
This figure could change within a day’s notice. Hunters are not required to report harvests for 24 hours.
