Fish and Game officials are holding public hearings this week on a plan to allow hunting and trapping of bobcats.
The first hearing takes place tonight in Representatives Hall at the State House in Concord. Tomorrow night officials will hold a hearing at Fish and Game's Region 1 office in Lancaster.
Bobcat hunting has been banned in New Hampshire since 1989, when the population dropped below an estimated 200.
Biologists now say the population may high enough to support hunting and trapping. Fish and Game has proposed issuing 50 permits through a lottery system, with trapping in December and hunting in January.
The plan, if given final approval, would take effect this December.
Opponents have questioned the state's population estimates and say there's no reason to kill the bobcats.
