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Worries about wolf kills

Wyoming residents can now buy a permit to kill a wolf.  But in Teton County, they only need a permit if they're hunting north of Highway 22.  South of that highway, which bisects the county and crosses Teton Pass, anyone can kill a wolf, day or night, for free -- at least for the next two weeks.

That's because Wyoming's wolf management plan classifies wolves as trophy game north of the highway. Trophy game status means hunting is regulated and a permit is required. But south of the highway, wolves are deemed predators so those regulations don't apply.

Wilson resident and avid wildlife watcher Ann Smith lives near that dividing line where she says the lack of regulations are worrisome, especially in an area home to subdivisions, bike paths and popular hiking trails.

"It's frightening because I have two dogs, and I walk them up the Teton Pass quite often without leashes, and I have one dog, who's dark, could be perhaps mistaken for one of the black wolves, so I am afraid."

Unregulated killing will be allowed until October 15th when Wyoming's plan calls for moving the line further south, to protect dispersing wolves during the winter.

Smith says she has talked with many residents who oppose the hunt and they worry about seeing wolves displayed.

I have a real fear that when I go into town that I might see a wolf draped over someone's hood."

Smith says visitors from around the world come to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks for a chance to see wildlife, including living wolves in the wild.

A multi-media journalist, Rebecca Huntington is a regular contributor to Wyoming Public Radio. She has reported on a variety of topics ranging from the National Parks, wildlife, environment, health care, education and business. She recently co-wrote the one-hour, high-definition documentary, The Stagecoach Bar: An American Crossroads, which premiered in 2012. She also works at another hub for community interactions, the Teton County Library where she is a Communications and Digital Media Specialist. She reported for daily and weekly newspapers in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon and Wyoming for more than a decade before becoming a multi-media journalist. She completed a Ted Scripps Fellowship in Environmental Journalism at the University of Colorado in 2002. She has written and produced video news stories for the PBS series This American Land (thisamericanland.org) and for Assignment Earth, broadcast on Yahoo! News and NBC affiliates. In 2009, she traveled to Guatemala to produce a series of videos on sustainable agriculture, tourism and forestry and to Peru to report on the impacts of extractive industries on local communities.
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