U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces national recovery plan for gray wolves

Over the last two decades, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has repeatedly indicated the gray wolf is no longer in need of protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). However, due to litigation from those who oppose delisting, such as Center for Biological Diversity and others, the species has bounced on and off the list, even while populations in many area reach troubling numbers to those who live with them.

Last week, after completing an extensive peer-reviewed assessment of wolf populations in the country using the best available science, the FWS announced a “not warranted” finding for two petitions to list gray wolves under the ESA in the Northern Rocky Mountains and the Western United States,” according to a press release. 

This finding does not change the legal status of gray wolf population. 

Under the ESA, gray wolves are listed as endangered in 44 states, threatened in Minnesota and under state jurisdiction in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and eastern portions of Oregon and Washington. Data from 2022 showed, in seven states in the Western United States, at least 286 packs of wolves, attributing to an estimated 2,797 animals.

Using modeling techniques that took into consideration various threats such as human-caused mortality, existing regulation availability and disease, the FWS analysis indicated that wolves in the Western United States were not at risk of extinction now or in the foreseeable future.

 In fact, under the most extreme harvest and disease scenario, the model showed a population of 739 wolves as the lowest possible outcome, with 2,586 wolves as the least extreme scenario in those states. 

“The Fish and Wildlife Service got the right answer, again — as they have done repeatedly for the last 20 years,” said James L. Cummins, president of the Boone and Crockett Club, and a wildlife biologist by training. “The gray wolf population has met FWS recovery goals since 2003 and has not been at risk of extinction since before that time.” 

The Service pointed to the fact that wolves have proven their ability to adapt to changes in their environment, allowing their populations to be resilient.

The press release also stated the Service found the national discussion of gray wolves must “look more comprehensively at conservation tools available to federal, state and Tribal governments.” 

The finding proposed a national recovery plan for the gray wolf.

 “It’s hard to understand why FWS has proposed a new recovery plan,” said Cummins.

 “The issue we face is not that the gray wolf may disappear, but that people disagree on how many wolves should roam the country — and where. The question is how best to manage sustainable wolf populations, not how to recover a species threatened with extinction. The Club supports a national consensus that would sustain the wolf population and manage their effect on other wildlife, and their risk to livestock and people. To accomplish this goal, each state must regain the authority to carry out its own management plan.” 

 In an email to the Times, Chris Vaughan of Hunter Nation said unmanaged wolf numbers in Wisconsin has precipitated a significant fall in average deer harvest numbers while the wolf population has grown over 300% since 2000.

“Hunter Nation is disappointed in the decision made by the Biden administration’s USFWL to stand down and not address the immediate need for the gray wolf to be delisted,” he said. “Defering any decision on gray wolf management for at least an additional two years will cause irreparable harm to our natural resources.”

The Fish and Wildlife Service also said in their press release that five of their six rulings regarding the ESA status of wolves have been overturned by the courts with part of that reason being the failure of the Service to consider how delisting groups of wolves affects the entire population. 

This new nationwide plan, the press release said, would “provide a vision for species recovery that is connected to site-specific actions for reducing threats and conserving listed species and their ecosystems.”

Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].