Think that wolf you see in Yellowstone is safe from hunting? Think again.
The state of Wyoming allows wolf hunting directly outside the borders of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Park wolves can and do wander over the borders and are killed to be hung as a trophy in a hunter’s home. Both the alpha female of the Lamar Canyon Pack, 06, and her daughter who also became alpha female of the same pack, Spitfire, died at the hands of trophy hunters. No one is eating wolves, they are killed for “fun” or for a trophy. Chances of survival for a wolf in Wyoming are slim. Almost half of all of our wolves will die each year. In 2018, 42% of the wolves in Wyoming were killed by hunters or from conflicts with humans. Wyoming thinks 160 wolves are enough for the entire state and allows any “extra” wolves to be killed. Wolves are extremely valuable to the ecosystem as a keystone predator and are killed only because of a cultural hatred in Wyoming toward the species. The state of Wyoming allows wolves to be killed in 85% of the state year-round using any means including gassing pups in dens, dynamite, and poison. No age restrictions, ethical hunting standards, or bag limits are in place to protect any wolf in most of the state, including pups. Running over wolves with snowmobiles is allowed and does happen. Most of the wolves in Wyoming are on public lands, lands owned by YOU. If you think wolves deserve better treatment and should be protected across the state, please write to the Wyoming Game and Fish Commissioners or Governor Mark Gordon to tell them that you value wolves alive. Our Spitfire Campaign aims to bring awareness of the plight of wolves to the public and to tell our wildlife management agency that wolves are valued by millions of people from coast to coast.
... let's eliminate trophy hunting of wolves near the National Parks and across Wyoming.
A long-term plan to eliminate the trophy hunting of wolves in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Read about plan details here and below.
What is the Spitfire Fund?
Speaking for the Majority
Millions of people visit Yellowstone National Park each year to see wolves and bears in their natural habitat. The killing of now two famous wolves from the same pack, 06 and her daughter Spitfire, have shocked and stunned the world over. Hundreds of thousands of people had seen both of these wolves first-hand and are heartbroken that they are now dead at the hands of humans. Killed just over the boundary of Yellowstone National Park, in Montana, people are outraged and want the killing to stop. We will attend government meetings and continue to demand that officials listen to the desires of the majority of citizens who want the discontinuation of hunting of predators statewide.
Protest
Show government agencies that you stand against trophy hunting of wolves and all our Wyoming wildlife. Trophy hunting has no place in modern wildlife management. Killing for the sake of killing is unacceptable in our society and is opposed by a vast majority of the American public. WWA hosted the first ever protest against trophy hunting in Wyoming in 2019 and will continue to host future protests until our voices are heard and valued.
Billboards
We have successfully placed several billboards around the National Parks to educate visitors on the grizzly bear hunt, we will now do the same with the Spitfire campaign. Billboards will be placed to let visitors who love wildlife know that the wolf they see in Yellowstone National Park today could be a taxidermied trophy on a hunter’s wall tomorrow.
How can we get Wyoming's wildlife management agency to listen to what the people want?
Our wildlife management agencies are still operating on the principles of the past. There is ample evidence to show that the American public as a whole is transitioning to wildlife watching and away from consumptive uses like hunting. The majority can be silent no longer, we must let the agencies that hold our wildlife in the trust of the public know that the majority of people do not want to see carnivores killed for no purpose. We inform the public on comment opportunities that will bring change to the state wildlife management agency to let them know the people are demanding change.
No Trophy Hunting.
From 2011 – 2016, numbers of hunters dropped 16% and big game hunters decreased 20%. In the same time period, numbers of wildlife watchers increased 20% by participation and 29% by spending. Hunting is a declining activity and the vast majority of the American public finds trophy hunting unnecessary and archaic . Wolves are not vermin, they are not a pest to be eradicated, and they are certainly not a trophy to be hung on a wall. The sport hunting of predators disrupts the balance of the ecosystem as we have seen how natural processes have been restored to Yellowstone National Park with the reintroduction of wolves and the protection of grizzly bears. Trophy hunting is not acceptable in our modern society.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Secret Government Agency Kills Wildlife in Wyoming
Wildlife Services is a government agency that spends millions of your tax dollars each year to kill native wildlife. They even kill carnivores before they have preyed upon livestock as a “preventative measure” which has shown to be ineffective by many studies. In 2018, Wildlife Services killed 13,951 individual animals including 6,349 coyotes, 12 domestic cats, and 51 wolves.
