Grey wolves in the northern Rocky mountains have had their protected species status restored.
Efforts over 15 years to protect the species in the US have helped boost the wolves鈥� numbers. This has been so successful that last year the US Fish and Wildlife Service for wolves in Idaho and Montana, though not in Wyoming.
But last week, district judge overturned that decision. He ruled that the law did not allow one part of the population to be hunted and another part protected.
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鈥淭his decision is a significant victory for wolves, for the integrity of the ESA, and for all Americans who care deeply about conservation,鈥� says Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife, which was a plaintiff in the case.
However, Carolyn Sime, statewide wolf coordinator at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, says the decision will be costly for farmers. 鈥淎 minimum of 100 cattle and in some years up to 200 sheep are confirmed killed by wolves each year in Montana. That represents a significant financial burden if you鈥檙e a livestock owner,鈥� Sime says. 鈥淭he ability to manage a wolf population under fair chase hunting is now lost.鈥�
Wiped out
There are more than 1700 grey wolves in the northern Rockies 鈥� an area that includes all of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, plus portions of Washington, Oregon and Utah. Once abundant throughout North America, by the 1930s grey wolves had been exterminated in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and south-western Canada. They were listed as endangered in 1974 under the ESA and reintroduced to the northern Rockies in the mid-1990s.
鈥淭he service鈥檚 decision to delist the wolf in Idaho and Montana reflected the strong commitments from the states of Idaho and Montana to manage grey wolves in a sustainable manner,鈥� of the US Fish and Wildlife Service. 鈥淭oday鈥檚 ruling makes it clear this wolf population cannot be delisted until the state of Wyoming has instituted an adequate management programme, similar to those of Idaho and Montana.鈥�
鈥淭he million-dollar question is how to manage the wolves with these new legal hurdles,鈥� says Sime. She says the parks service is looking at a range of options, including appealing the decision.
