It was revealed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) that the hunters are killing Wisconsin wolves faster this year and that 70% of wolf hunt quota has already been met. The fact that the hunters are killing Wisconsin wolves faster this year means that another wolf hunt season can be pushed towards an early end.

The wolf killing season began on October 15 and was supposed to last until February 28. During that time hunters should not kill more than 150 wolves. But not even 10 days later after the wolf hunt season opened, hunters had already killed 103 wolves or 70% of the limit. As a result of this, Wisconsin wildlife officials have closed four of the six wolf-hunting designated area.

Last year, it took hunters two weeks to reach the 70% mark, revealed Dave MacFarland, from the Department of Natural Resources. It’s true that the kill limit was higher (251 wolves), but the Department issued about 1,000 more tags than it did this year.

In 2012, which was the inaugural wolf-hunting season, 1,160 tags were issued, and it took hunters 34 days to reach the 70% mark.

The reason behind the fact that this year the hunters are killing Wisconsin wolves faster is because hunters are heading out into the woods earlier, knowing that a particular zone could close down faster than predicted. Most hunters will trap and not shoot the wolves. This practice is becoming more and more popular of late. Out of all the wolves that were killed this year, 85% of them were trapped compared to 52% in 2012.

The upper Midwest grey wolf population is still on the rise, even after three sates (Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin) have begun allowing the killing of grey wolves. A recent report has revealed that in the past year, the wolf population has grown to 3,719 from 3,670.

The wolf hunts in Minnesota will begin between November 8-23 and November 29 and it will end on  January 31, 2015. The Department of Natural Resources is permitting the killing of 250 wolves, 30 more than last year.