Controversial Wolf Hunt Opens In Michigan

A wolf hunt begins today in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The state is allowing hunters to kill 43 wolves in the first organized hunt in Michigan since wolves were removed from the endangered species list in 2012.

The hunt is very controversial. Some scientists and environmental advocates deeply oppose it. But others, including Adam Bump of the state's Department of Natural Resources, have said the hunt will help curb increasingly unusual wolf behavior.

Bump told Michigan Radio's Steve Carmondy: "You have wolves showing up in backyards, wolves showing up on porches staring at people through their sliding glass doors while people are pounding on it, exhibiting no fear."

Carmondy investigated that claim and found that it was not true. He speaks to Here & Now's Meghna Chakrabarti.

Meantime, Michigan is not the only state with a wolf hunt — Wisconsin and Minnesota are holding them too.

For a broader look at wolves in the Upper Midwest, Chakrabarti speaks with Adrian Treves, professor of environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and director of the school's Carnivore Coexistence Lab.