Photographer Joins Bear Hunt, But Not To Kill

The largest grizzly hunt in the Lower 48 in more than 40 years is set to open next month in Wyoming, and more than 7,000 people applied for a chance to kill one of up to 22 bears. Among the tiny number of people who won the draw for permits is a wildlife photographer who has produced some of the most famous images of the area’s grizzlies. Thomas Mangelsen, who has lived near Grand Teton National Park for four decades, said this week that he will use the permit to shoot bears as he’s always done – with a camera, not a gun. Mangelsen’s luck in the lottery followed a campaign spearheaded by local hunt opponents to encourage like-minded people to apply for permits in hopes of preventing the death of at least one member of the Yellowstone area’s grizzly population, which was removed from the endangered species list in 2017.