"Minnesota's first managed wolf hunting and trapping season, set for this fall, will be more than just controversial.

It also will be a cultural clash.

American Indian bands around the state oppose the hunting and trapping of wolves on spiritual grounds, will prohibit wolf hunting on tribal lands and complain that the DNR and Legislature haven't considered their views.

"The wolf is part of our creation story, and therefore many Ojibwe have a strong spiritual connection to the wolf,'' Karen Diver, chairwoman of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, wrote in a letter to the DNR this spring. "Many Ojibwe believe the fate of the wolf is closely tied to the fate of all the Ojibwe. For these reasons the Fond du Lac Band feels the hunting and trapping of wolves is inappropriate.''

Leaders of the Leech Lake, Red Lake and White Earth bands wrote similar letters of concern to the DNR when the Legislature was still debating a wolf hunting season. Red Lake -- the only closed reservation in the state -- will close its 900,000-acre reservation to wolf hunting."

Get the Story:
Plan to hunt wolves illustrates culture clash (The Minneapolis Star Tribune 7/1)

Related Stories:
Bill to authorize wolf hunt in Wisconsin gains final approval (3/15)
Ojibwe tribes in Wisconsin oppose bill to authorize wolf hunt (3/13)