reprinted without permission from North American Hunting Club
Michigan Wolf Finds Its Way To Missouri
A Grundy County, Missouri man was returning from a bowhunt on his land in late October when he claims that he saw an 80-pound canine peering into his sheep pen. Taking the animal for a coyote, he nocked an arrow and shot it. He realized his error when he discovered that it was wearing a numbered ear tag and a radio-tracking collar.
The hunter took the carcass to Missouri Conservation Agent Jeff Berti. State Conservation Department officials verified that it was a gray wolf and traced it back to its original capture site near Ironwood, Michigan.
Gray wolves, also known as timber wolves, once lived in Missouri. They were extirpated in the state and throughout most of the eastern United States by the end of the 19th century. Minnesota retained a wild population, which grew gradually after the species was granted protection. In recent years, Minnesota’s gray wolf population has grown rapidly to a current estimated total of 2,445. This led to the species being reclassified from endangered to threatened in Minnesota.
The Michigan wolf killed in Missouri is the first gray wolf documented in the state in modern times. The hunter who shot it won’t be prosecuted, since he was protecting his livestock and reasonably believed that the animal was a coyote.
[This message has been edited by Encore (edited 11-16-2001).]
Michigan Wolf Finds Its Way To Missouri
A Grundy County, Missouri man was returning from a bowhunt on his land in late October when he claims that he saw an 80-pound canine peering into his sheep pen. Taking the animal for a coyote, he nocked an arrow and shot it. He realized his error when he discovered that it was wearing a numbered ear tag and a radio-tracking collar.
The hunter took the carcass to Missouri Conservation Agent Jeff Berti. State Conservation Department officials verified that it was a gray wolf and traced it back to its original capture site near Ironwood, Michigan.
Gray wolves, also known as timber wolves, once lived in Missouri. They were extirpated in the state and throughout most of the eastern United States by the end of the 19th century. Minnesota retained a wild population, which grew gradually after the species was granted protection. In recent years, Minnesota’s gray wolf population has grown rapidly to a current estimated total of 2,445. This led to the species being reclassified from endangered to threatened in Minnesota.
The Michigan wolf killed in Missouri is the first gray wolf documented in the state in modern times. The hunter who shot it won’t be prosecuted, since he was protecting his livestock and reasonably believed that the animal was a coyote.
[This message has been edited by Encore (edited 11-16-2001).]
