MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources announced today the February wolf harvest season is underway through Feb. 28, 2021 in accordance with a circuit court order.

The DNR received 27,151 wolf harvest applications. There are 2,380 harvest authorizations available for purchase for applicants who are eligible to obtain a license and carcass/pelt tag.

During the Natural Resources Board Special Meeting on Feb. 15, the board unanimously voted for a harvest quota of 200 wolves outside reservation lands. Of the approved quota, 119 wolves are allocated to the state, and 81 wolves are allocated to the Ojibwe Tribes at their request in accordance with their treaty rights within the Ceded Territory.

Harvest updates and zone closures will be posted to the website here as information becomes available.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed gray wolves from the federal endangered species list on Jan. 4, 2021, returning management authority to the lower 48 states and tribes. The Wisconsin DNR has successfully managed gray wolves for decades and will continue to do so under our state’s laws and the best science available.

The DNR will continue to plan for a wolf harvest season to open on Nov. 6, 2021, while simultaneously working towards completing a wolf management plan to guide management decisions beginning in 2022.

For more on wolves in Wisconsin, visit the DNR website for additional information on wolf hunting and trapping, wolf management and wolf conflict abatement.