Gray wolf removed from protected list, transferring management to states and tribes
The Trump Administration removed the gray wolf from federal protection in the lower 48 states under the Endangered Species Act Thursday, effectively transferring management of the species to states and tribes.
The removal will take effect in January but was thought to be a pre-Election Day bid designed to appeal to rural voters concerned about wolf attacks on their livestock, the Associated Press noted.
In 2009 President Barack Obama had let a ruling stand by his predecessor, George W. Bush, that took the species off the list in the upper Midwest, Idaho and Montana. The wolves have been taken on and off over the years in various states, but this is the first blanket delisting, the Center for Biological Diversity said.
The administration’s move had not been unexpected, with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service saying last month that the species would probably be removed from the list by the end of the year.
The U.S. Department of the Interior said the move signified success in restoring the gray wolf, which now numbers around 6,000.
“Today’s action reflects the Trump Administration’s continued commitment to species conservation based on the parameters of the law and the best scientific and commercial data available,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt in a statement, at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, just before traveling to Colorado to hunt elk, according to The Denver Post. “After more than 45 years as a listed species, the gray wolf has exceeded all conservation goals for recovery. Today’s announcement simply reflects the determination that this species is neither a threatened nor endangered species based on the specific factors Congress has laid out in the law.”
But many conservation groups objected on the grounds that while the gray wolf population is increasing, it does not inhabit enough of its historical range to sustain a recovery.
In addition, lifting federal protections leaves the animals vulnerable to piecemeal management among states and jurisdictions with differing policies, conservationists said.
The ruling jeopardizes the “fragile recovery” of the species, The Humane Society of the United States said in a statement, calling it a “misguided decision” and noting the objections of scientists, veterinary professionals and 1.8 million opposing comments to the proposal online.
The society and other groups also alleged that the rule change opens wolves up for trophy hunting.
“Today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is sentencing thousands of wolves to death,” Humane Society president Kitty Block said in a statement. “Wolves are not only a cherished part of our natural heritage, they are vital to ensuring that our ecosystems are healthy and biologically diverse. We will fight this latest attack with everything we have.”
The delisting immediately triggers a hunt in Wisconsin, the AP reported, due to a law on the books since 2012 that requires the state Department of Natural Resources to hold a wolf season from November through February.
In Colorado, voters are set to decide next week on a ballot measure, Proposition 114, that will dictate whether state officials reintroduce wolves on their former habitat west of the Continental Divide, The Denver Post reported.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ office called the announcement “yet another example of the Trump administration undermining longstanding, bedrock protections for our air, water, landscapes and wildlife,” The Denver Post reported.
