The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the party responsible for killing a federally-protected gray wolf in Pine County Minnesota. A dead, radio-collared wolf was recovered during the November 2005 deer season near County Road 31 between Kingsdale and Cloverton, Minnesota. Gray wolves are listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, and killing a wolf is prohibited by the federal law.
After its recovery, the wolf carcass was sent to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Forensic Laboratory in Ashland, Oregon, for examination. The forensic examinations yielded both ballistic and fingerprint evidence. According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Resident Agent in Charge Pat Lund, the wolf died as a result of two high velocity gun shots. “The evidence recovered by the lab is valuable, but we believe someone hunting or living in the area where the wolf was killed has additional information that will help finalize this investigation.”
Anyone with information about this or any other wolf killings in the State of Minnesota are urged to contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s law enforcement Tip Line at 1-800-532-2887 or the St. Paul law enforcement office at 651-778-8360.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 Fish and Wildlife Management offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
