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The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is offering a Report All Poaching (RAP) reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual who shot a gray wolf in Houghton County Saturday.
The shooting took place along M-26, one half-mile south of Twin Lakes.
DNR conservation officers said the shooter’s vehicle would have been parked along the west shoulder of M-26, heading southwest. The shooting took place sometime between the hours of 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. EST.
“The subject shot from the vehicle and struck the wolf as it was standing on the snowmobile trail (Trail No. 3) to the west of the highway,” said Sgt. Grant Emery of the DNR’s Baraga Field Office.
Gray wolves are a federally endangered species and are protected in Michigan. Wolves cannot legally be killed except in the defense of human life.
The maximum penalty for poaching a wolf is 90 days in jail or a fine of up to $1,000, or both, plus reimbursement of $1,500 to the state for the animal. Poaching convictions also usually include a suspension of hunting privileges for a period of four years.
Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Marquette DNR District Office at 906-228-6561 or the Report All Poaching line at 1-800-292-7800. All information provided is confidential.
For more information about gray wolves in Michigan, visit the DNR’s webpage at: www.michigan.gov/wolves.
