Wolves Lose Endangered Species Act Protection
On March 6th, Interior Secretary Ken Salzar released a decision to affirm the earlier decision of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove the population of the northern Rocky Mountain distinct population segment (DPS) of gray wolves in the states of Idaho, Montana, and parts of Washington, Oregon and Utah from the list of threatened and endangered species. Under this decision wolves will remain a federally protected species in Wyoming.
In the states that fall under the delisting order wolves will be state managed under the individual state wolf management plans. Idaho and Montana contain the largest percentage of wolves in the area that constitutes the northern Rocky Mountain DPS region. Both state plans will allow for a legal hunt of wolves.The Idaho plan expects to manage for >=15 breeding pairs of wolves, which means that Idaho can legally authorize take of up to ½ of its current wolf population. Idaho has confirmed its first wolf hunt planned for late this year. The Montana plan also expects to manage for >= 15 breeding pairs, which means they can legally authorize take of up to a quarter or more of the current wolf population.
The delisting rule also pertains to the eastern parts of Washington and Oregon where wolves do not currently have a stronghold. In these areas, there are a small number of wolves that have migrated into the region from British Columbia and Idaho. Wolves in these states will also be managed under their respective state plans.
Wolves are an important part of the landscape and provide a multitude of benefits to the restoration of ecosystems. In Yellowstone, for example, it has been argued that wolves have played a vital role in rehabilitating stream banks and controlling populations of ungulates in the park. (Ripple and Bescheta 2004, Smith et al. 2003). Washington and Oregon could benefit from wolf recovery in there landscapes scarred by the lack of large predator species. These individual states need to ensure that state management promotes the true recovery of this important predator species. State management agencies can benefit from the collection of accurate data of carnivore species.
In Washington, the Gifford Pinchot Task Force is beginning a new and exciting citizen volunteer tracking project in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest to help gather species and location data to ensure that agencies, organizations and the public have accurate, up-to-date data from which to manage and advocate for the return, wolves, and other key species.
