Fish and Game Commissioner of Alaska revealed on Thursday that the wolf hunting season close to Denali National Park and Preserve, which is a national park and preserve located in Interior Alaska, will end early this year. According to the commissioner, the decision has been taken after reviewing a report where a wolf was shot after scavenging from a bear baiting station.

Sam Cotton, Commissioner of the Fish and Game, said after the emergency order, the wolf hunting season will end in the area to the north and east of the Denali National Park. If Cotton hadn’t given order, the hunting season for this year could have been closed about two weeks earlier than the usual closing date.

In a telephonic interview on Thursday, Cotton said that the decision taken by him was based on news which stated that wolves in the area have been attracting towards bait stations. He said, “It’s an unintended consequence with the bear hunters. I haven’t confirmed it yet, but it’s possible that there were a couple of wolves taken in the early part of this month that we just found out about”.

On May 5, the National Park Service announced that it has updated its biannual survey on population of wolf in the area. It also stated three wolves were killed in the early May. One of the wolves died at jaws of other wolves, while the others, a male and a pregnant female, were shot by hunters in an area close to Healy, according to the National Park Service.

The park service also stated that after reviewing GPS data that was provided by the male wolf’s collar it was found that the wolf spent a long time before its death scavenging at a bait station.