To: Gordon Brown
From: Sean McTiernan
Re: Grey Wolf to be ‘Managed’
Reintroduced into the northern Rockies in 1995, the grey wolf has increased the size of its species to nearly 200 packs across the Greater Yellowstone area of Wyoming, southern Montana, and eastern Idaho. In the coming months, the USFWS is preparing to delist the grey wolf as an endangered species due to its recovery. According to USFWS documents, the ruling was revised because “the wolf population had exceeded its recovery goals” and wolf predation was “impacting the survival of the adult cow elk” in parts of Idaho. Yet such a revision may significantly reduce the legal protection for the grey wolf, a precedent that could diminish overall legal protection for all endangered species, a possibility which finds conservation groups and governmental agencies at odds.
Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana supports the USFWS revision as it gives the states broader population control. Further, Governor Schweitzer announced that Montana is already planning to issue hunting licenses for wolves. Craig Kentworthy of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition believes the ruling to arbitrary, “an unnecessary step by the administration to potentially threaten recovery.” Defenders of Wildlife conservation specialist Suzanna Stone, who services the northern Rockies, calls the situation “a scheme based on backdoor politics” and faults the USFWS for ignoring “its responsibility to ensure the long-term survival of the region’s wolf population.” However, federal biologists believe the rule change will correct the “unattainable threshold” found in the previous ruling, whereby states were not permitted to kill wolves actively threatening deer and elk. Officials in Montana expect lawsuits on this matter, which may delay the issue at hand. The Greater Yellowstone Coalition and Defenders of Wildlife may utilize the courts in an attempt to challenge the rule change. A full recovery of the wolf population requires sensible wolf management, which includes cooperation from conservation groups and federal agencies alike. This result may only come, however, following a lengthy legal process.
Further Information
CBS Montana: http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7768769
Defenders of Wildlife: http://www.defenders.org/newsroom/press_releases_folder/2008/01_24_2008_northern_rockies_wolves_lose_important_protections.php
The New York Times: http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/24/some-howl-over-federal-plan-to-expand-wolf-killing/?ref=science
Department of the Interior, US Fish and Wildlife Service: http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/mammals/wolf/EA_01182008/FR01242008.pdf
