Poachers Kill Newborn Wolf Pups in Idaho Forest

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Wildlife officials say poachers took some newborn wolf pups from their Idaho den and killed them.

The Spokesman-Review reports the pups were just a few weeks old.

Authorities believe poachers killed them sometime during the week of May 16 in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. The den was near a heavily used recreation area.

Defenders of Wildlife regional representative Suzanne Asha Stone says it's illegal to hunt the pups on public land, but some private land has a year-round hunting season with no age limits. Her organization has lobbied for changes to protect pups.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game says those regulations help landowners address wolf-livestock conflicts and wolves that get habituated to people.