The following editorial was published Jan. 10 in The Cape Codder:

In the past two years we’ve been frustrated to see the odious coyote hunting contests sponsored by the Hyannis gun shop Powderhorn Outfitters. The competition awarded cash prizes to hunters who brought in the largest coyote and for the most cumulative weight of animals killed.

In our view the contests are an insult to the spirituality many look for and find in nature.

We believe in a set of core values related to hunting: reverence, respect and humility.

The contests, which rightly caused an outcry from protesters, are a boorish way to capitalize on the egos of some hunters, who exploit for money or fame the animals they have hunted and killed. Sad.

So we were relieved to learn that the Massachusetts Fisheries and Wildlife Board voted in December to prohibit hunting…