State won't hold hunts for Yellowstone grizzlies in 2018
FILE - This June 20, 2014 file photo taken by an automatic trail camera provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows an adult female grizzly bear in the Cabinet Mountains in northwest Montana. Montana wildlife officials are recommending against a grizzly bear hunt in 2018 after the animals lost their federal protections across a three-state region around Yellowstone National Park. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via AP, File)
BILLINGS (AP) — Montana won’t hold a Yellowstone region grizzly bear hunt in 2018 after state officials said they want to avoid complicating a lawsuit over the animal’s legal status.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commissioners voted unanimously Thursday against a hunt this year. Commission Chairman Dan Vermillion says the move doesn’t mean there won’t be a grizzly hunt in the future.
Federal officials last year lifted Endangered Species Act protections for about 700 bears in and around Yellowstone National Park, opening the door to potential hunting.
Indian tribes and environmentalists are challenging the decision in federal court. They say hunting could reverse the species’ recovery.
Grizzly hunting in Wyoming could begin this fall. No Idaho decision has been made.
The Yellowstone population has increased from an estimated 136 bears when they were granted protections in the mid-1970s.