Some people who want to reduce the number of bobcats killed in Illinois have applied for hunting permits in Illinois with no intention of using them.
The Chicago Tribune reports 34-year-old Lauren Umek, an ecologist from Chicago, says she is the only person in her group of 30 or so like-minded friends and relatives who obtained a permit.
Umek says hunting plays an important role in conservation but that she didn't see detailed, scientifically based research showing the need for hunting the wild carnivore.
Illinois Department of Natural Resources spokesman Tim Schweitzer declined The Associated Press' request for comment on people applying for permits for such reasons.
Permits are being mailed, and the season is scheduled to open with trapping Nov. 5.
The bobcat spent over 20 years on Illinois' endangered species list.
