MADISON, WI (AP)-- After months of contentious debate, Wisconsin's first organized wolf hunt is finally set to begin.
The hunt officially begins Monday morning and will run through February. The law establishing the hunt allows hunters to use bait and traps and hunt at night after the November gun deer season ends.
Animal advocates have argued for months that Wisconsin's wolf population is too fragile to sustain a hunt. State wildlife officials have limited the total kill to 116 animals, a fraction of the 800 or so wolves they believe roam the state, and awarded only 1,160 permits.
A Madison judge also has temporarily blocked a provision allowing hunters to use dogs, taking one of their most effective tools off the table until at least late December.
