Bison Hunt Starts Slowly in Northwest Wyoming

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Hunters haven't had much success at the start of the annual Jackson Hole bison hunt in northwest Wyoming.

Game managers say only 11 bison were harvested in the opening days of the hunt that started on Aug. 15 and goes on for five months.

Hunting is allowed on the National Elk Refuge and Bridger-Teton National Forest to protect forage for elk wintering on the refuge and to keep bison numbers at manageable levels.

Ten bison were killed on the refuge through the first 12 days, and a single bison was killed on Bridger-Teton land.

Elk refuge biologist Eric Cole tells the Jackson Hole News & Guide that bison that had wandered south from Grand Teton National Park, a hunt-free safe zone, quickly left the refuge once hunting started.