Although a federal judge ruled in early February the gray wolf would once again be listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the ruling did not include the Northern Rockies wolf population. Now, environmental groups are seeking immediate protections for the wolves.
Protections were removed for the demographic by Congress in 2011. The population includes gray wolves in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho, along with eastern Oregon, eastern Washington and a corner of Utah. The states have authority to manage their own wolf populations.
A handful of conservation groups petitioned the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on March 1. The petition seeks emergency listing of the gray wolf in the Northern Rocky Mountains, claiming “Idaho and Montana have drastically altered their wolf management laws and regulations to push populations below viable levels. Idaho, for instance, allows for essentially unregulated and unlimited wolf killing.”
The petition says that in USFWS’ decision to delist the wolf population, the agency made the commitment to emergency list the wolves if it was determined a state changed their regulatory framework to authorize unlimited and unregulated taking of wolves.
“Given the regulatory changes in Idaho and Montana, and continued inadequacy of state management in Wyoming, the Service must adhere to its 2009 promise to relist wolves on an emergency basis,” the petition read.
The groups said a new law in Idaho allows hunters, trappers and private contractors to kill wolves year-round, at any age and with no limits. In addition, Montana now allows the killing of 85 percent of the population, which disproportionately impacts wolves from Yellowstone National Park, the petition said.
On Feb. 17, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks closed the hunting season in Montana’s hunting Region 3, which borders Yellowstone National Park, after the quota for 82 killed wolves was met. As of March 2, wolf kills in Montana totaled 252 head. The remaining six hunting regions continue to be open for the hunting season.
In addition to the petitioners, the petition says “hundreds of thousands of people across the U.S. and around the world” are asking for emergency wolf relisting, including regional Tribes, 23 senators, 81 representatives, more than 70 directors of zoos and over 800 scientists.
“Without the emergency listing the FWS promised in 2009 would respond to new laws like these, the core of the population of gray wolves in the Northern Rockies is at risk,” the petition concluded.
“Moreover, without emergency listing, the Service will set harmful precedent by condoning states with management for delisted species to change their regulations to allow and encourage take of recovered species to the point that puts them back on the brink of extinction.”
In a recent opinion piece for USA Today, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland expressed her support for wolf relisting, if necessary. “Because of the gray wolf’s recovery, individual states are responsible for its welfare and sustaining that recovery. Nevertheless, we will reinstate federal protections under the ESA for the northern Rocky Mountains’ gray wolf, if necessary.”
She also noted the USFWS is evaluating whether a relisting of the northern Rocky Mountains gray wolf population under the ESA is necessary.
Petition signatories include the International Wildlife Coexistence Network, Western Watersheds Project, WildEarth Guardians, Endangered Species Coalition, Wyoming Untrapped, Wyoming Wildlife Advocates, 06 Legacy and the Center for a Humane Economy. — Anna Miller, WLJ managing editor
