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Defenders Magazine
Defenders in Action: Feds Jump the Gun on Wolf De-listing in Rockies
Prompted by the wolf’s rebound in the northern Rockies, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in February proposed removing animals in this region from federal endangered species protection.
But “de-listing” the wolves and handing management responsibility to the six states in this region is premature, says Jamie Rappaport Clark, Defenders’ executive vice president.
Noting that the Idaho legislature passed a memorial in 2001 that called for the eradication of wolves in Idaho “by any means necessary,” Clark says that de-listing wolves is inappropriate until the states have responsible management plans in place. To date, only Montana and Oregon have such plans. Idaho, Utah, Washington and Wyoming do not. About 800 wolves roam across central Idaho, western Montana and northwestern Wyoming.
The de-listing proposal—which was open for public comment until April 10—would establish a “distinct population segment” of gray wolves encompassing all of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, the eastern third of Washington and Oregon and a small portion of north-central Utah. Wolves have not yet been re-established in the latter three states.
“If the government does de-list the wolves in the Rocky Mountains, it will be the states’ responsibility to manage them effectively so that they do not decline to the point where re-listing is necessary,” says Clark. “At this point, of the states with wolves, only Montana is ready to accept this responsibility.”
The Bush administration attempted to downgrade the status of gray wolves in the eastern and western United States from “endangered” to “threatened” in 2003—even though wolves today inhabit only 5 percent of their historic range. Defenders and others filed a lawsuit that year arguing that FWS’s decision to “down-list” was not based on science. A federal district court agreed and ruled last year that FWS violated the Endangered Species Act when it proposed reducing protections for gray wolves across most of the lower 48 states.
To learn more, visit Northern Rockies.
