Wolf hunting plans made final

Wolf in woods
A wolf walks in the woods near the Echo Trail about 20 miles northwest of Ely, Minn.
Steve Foss for MPR

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has finalized plans for the state's first-ever wolf hunting season this fall and winter.

The DNR will sell 6,000 wolf-hunting permits, but will limit the number of animals that can be killed to 400.

Hunting will take place in three zones in northern Minnesota, which will allow the DNR to manage the wolf season in cooperation with Native American bands that have treaties guaranteeing their off-reservation hunting rights.

"We created those zones in case there's some tribal harvest that has to be accounted for in our target harvest," said DNR Fish and Wildlife Director Ed Boggess. "If they did decide to take some wolves, we would need to reduce the amount of harvest by the state-licensed hunters to accomodate that tribal harvest."

Some of the state's largest bands have already announced their opposition to hunting wolves.

Minnesota's wolf season will begin in November and run through the end of January, or until hunters and trappers reach the 400-animal limit.

(Heather Beckius, a Gary Eichten News Fellow, contributed to this report)

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