'There's no science involved': Alberta wolf pelt contest comes under fire by conservation groups

A contest launched in Alberta that incentivizes the killing of wolves has come under fire by conservation groups.

The Alberta Trappers Association launched a top wolf pelt contest at the start of October, offering a reward of a large cash prize for the best pelts.

“A harvest incentive for trappers to make a better effort to harvest wolves on their trap lines,” said Bill Abercrombie, the president of the Alberta Trappers Association.

“The incentive is to manage wolves effectively and try to get a better effort out of trappers by providing a bit of a subsidy for them.”

According to Abercrombie, the contest for the best pelt focuses on trappers using their skill to harvest the best quality and best prepared pelt. It is the first time the association has run the contest.

“It's best for wolves and best for people if the trapper’s role on the landscape is maintained,” said Abercrombie.

“It maintains a relationship of respect but also awareness with wolves, and it's not good to have them comfortable around people.”

The group partnered with the Alberta Professional Outfitters Society, offering prizes of $5,000 for the top wolf killed, $3,500 for second prize and $2,000 for third prize. The winner also gets a belt buckle.

The association said winning pelts will be auctioned off to raise money to “support conservation efforts in Alberta.”

It will also pay $250 per wolf harvested to a maximum of 400 wolves harvested throughout the province.

That is funded by the Alberta Professional Outfitters Association, and the amount of wolves is determined by what the Alberta Trappers Association has determined to be a sustainable number.

“It’s not a contest to see who can get the most wolves,” said Abercombie.

However, animal conservation groups and wildlife experts disagree.

“This was done without any consultation,” said John E. Marriott, who is the co-founder of the Exposed Wildlife Conservancy.

“This is a program that obviously is taking a resource that is publicly owned, wolves, and letting a very small fringe minority of people go out and kill these animals for fun, basically, so they can win prizes and win money.”

“There's no science involved.”

The provincial government counts 7,000 wolves roaming around Alberta. They are protected from hunting inside national parks.

Kathreen Ruckstuhl, a professor in biological sciences at the University of Calgary, says the wolf population isn’t out of hand in the province.

“I have a hard time believing that they're spreading and showing up everywhere.” said Ruckstuhl.

“It sounded a lot like just the derby where the point is that you're going to kill as many wolves as you can, and then you get a trophy for the biggest wolves.”

The Alberta Wilderness Association says 400 wolves harvested during an entire season could be sustainable, however, the addition of the bounty program could trigger harvests to become unstainable.

Todd Loewen, minister of forestry and parks, says this contest is not a Government of Alberta program but “does fall within legal parameters for harvesting predator species through trapping and hunting.”

“Trapping wolves has been a longstanding wildlife management technique used in Alberta and other jurisdictions. This practice is sometimes vital for protecting vulnerable species, such as caribou, by helping to manage rapidly growing predator populations that can impact their survival,” he said.

The Alberta Wilderness Association sees a conflict of interest with Loewen’s background as a hunter and trapper, which it first thought was problematic when the Wildlife Management Division was transferred to his department.

In his 2024 annual public disclosure to the Ethics Commissioner of Alberta, Loewen once again reported receiving dividends from Red Willow Outfitters in Valleyview, which offers guided hunts for bears, deer, moose, elk and wolves.

“He's spoken publicly about his family's connection to hunting and trapping, and it being a family activity and he's frequently been in contact with trappers and with hunters,” said Ruiping Luo, a conservation specialist at the Alberta Wilderness Association.

“He's chosen to make decisions that benefit hunters and trappers instead of all Albertans.”

“It's hard to imagine considering his close connection to hunters and trappers, that he doesn't know about it.  He hasn't taken any action to state that this isn't something that we should support either.”

In a statement on Friday afternoon, a spokesperson from Loewen’s office reiterated the minister’s actions are not a conflict of interest.

“When Minister Todd Loewen took office as Alberta’s Minister of Forestry and Parks, he placed his shares in the company into a blind trust, in accordance with legislative requirements. This action was taken under the direction of the ethics commissioner, who reviewed the details and cleared the minister, as is standard practice for all cabinet members,” the statement reads.

The contest runs until March 31, 2025.