Dr. Jane Goodall and other wildlife activists are some of the unexpected entrants in a lottery to hunt up to 22 grizzly bears near Yellowstone national park. But don’t worry, they don’t actually want to kill a bear! Instead, their goal is to infiltrate Wyoming state’s first grizzly bear hunt in 44 years by acquiring licenses they have no intention of using.
In June 2017, the US government delisted grizzly bears as an endangered species despite the pleas of conservationists, and later that year Wyoming’s Game and Fish commission voted 7-0 in favor of a grizzly bear hunt.
But the impromptu campaign, “Shoot ‘em With A Camera, Not A Gun,” has caught hunting officials in Wyoming off guard. If they win, the lottery activists will pay for their license and head into the wild to shoot a grizzly with a camera instead of a gun.
Even after intense conservation, there are still only 700 grizzly bears left in and around the Yellowstone area, and 1,800 worldwide.
You can support the activists by donating to their Go Fund Me page, which helps them cover any necessary costs to participate in the field with a camera. Any unused funds will be used to continue this campaign to encourage our public to get involved in the protection and preservation of our Grizzlies, and all Wyoming wildlife.