ACTIONS TO TAKE: 

1) Post a comment on WDFW here, if it appears disabled, you can still comment on their posts anyways! :https://www.facebook.com/WashingtonFishWildlife 

(2) tweet @WDFW @GovInslee ; 

(3) Post on Gov. Jay Inslee FB page; 

(4) Email Gov Inslee at governor@gov.wa.gov.; 

(5) Monday morning call Gov Inslee 360-902-4111 and Director of WDFW Phil Anderson: (360) 902-2200

Center for Biological Diversity
For Immediate Release, August 22, 2014

Contacts: Amaroq Weiss, Center for Biological Diversity, (707) 779-9613
Mike Petersen, The Lands Council, (509) 209-2406
Suzanne Stone, Defenders of Wildlife, (208) 861-4655
Tim Coleman, Kettle Range Conservation Group, (509) 775-2667/(509) 435-1092 (cell)
Nick Cady, Cascadia Wildlands, (314) 482-3746
Washington Wildlife Agency Urged to Revoke Kill Order for Huckleberry Pack

OLYMPIA, Wash.— Eight conservation organizations, representing hundreds of thousands of Washington residents, are calling on the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to rescind a kill order issued earlier this week for wolves of the Huckleberry pack. The order authorizes agency staff and a sheep operator to shoot any wolves seen in the vicinity of a band of sheep that has incurred losses due to wolves over the past few weeks. In a letter to the Department, http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/wolves_on_the_west_coast/pdfs/Huckleberry_Pack_ltr_to_WDFW_-_Aug_21_2014.pdf the conservation groups urged the agency to continue efforts to deter wolves from killing more sheep using nonlethal means rather than killing wolves, as it did two years ago when seven members of the Wedge pack were killed.

“We appreciate the agency’s efforts to work with the rancher and use nonlethal means to protect sheep from further losses,” said Amaroq Weiss, West Coast wolf organizer at the Center for Biological Diversity. “But the wolf kill order needs to be rescinded right away. Killing wolves is just not an effective means of protecting livestock.”

Between Aug. 11 and 12, 14 sheep were confirmed as killed by members of the Huckleberry Pack in southwestern Stevens County, and four more sheep have been killed by wolves since that time. Provided the rancher was using sufficient nonlethal deterrence measures at the time, he will be eligible for compensation from the state for the loss of the sheep. The Huckleberry Pack, with six to 12 members and no prior history of livestock conflicts, spends most of its time on the Spokane Reservation, but satellite data from the alpha male’s radio collar indicate he was present at the time the sheep were killed.

All of the details are still not clear, but the rancher’s sheep herder had apparently quit some weeks before the incident, and the sheep were thus unattended some or all of the time. The rancher does have four guard dogs. Nine additional sheep were killed earlier in the month, but were discovered too late to determine the cause of death.

“Before the state moves to killing wolves, it needs to ensure that all nonlethal measures have been exhausted,” said Mike Petersen, executive director of The Lands Council. “Subsequent deaths might have been averted if conflict-prevention strategies had been put into place earlier, though we are glad to hear reports that the sheep operator is fully cooperating with the agency to implement deterrence methods now.”

The agency is in the process of helping the rancher move his sheep to an alternate location, has multiple staff on site to help deter wolves from approaching the sheep, and has brought in a range rider to help monitor the sheep, along with the operator’s four livestock guard dogs. But the four most recent sheep deaths occurred before many of these measures were in place. Despite this fact Washington Department of Wildlife Director Phil Anderson issued the kill order for the wolves Wednesday.

“This is not a situation where the agency should yet be engaging in lethal control,” said Shawn Cantrell, Northwest office director for Defenders of Wildlife. “While the agency’s actions are a huge step up from how they handled the Wedge pack in 2012, there’s much more it could be doing before it authorizes the killing of wolves.”

A news report http://www.king5.com/videos/tech/science/environment/2014/08/21/ranchers-camp-to-protect-sheep-from-wolves/14232662/ Thursday evening from Seattle’s NBC news affiliate King5 News included an onsite interview with an agency staffer, who described the conflict-prevention tools the agency was using, including nonlethal rubber bullets, human presence and guard dogs, and emphasized that the agency is focusing on nonlethal conflict deterrence methods. In addition, this week Defenders of Wildlife sent several “foxlights,” a new deterrent from wildlife coexistence operations in Australia — which is already being used in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Canada to keep wolves away from livestock — to the Department.

“The agency knows that killing wolves doesn’t stop conflict and in fact the recent science is showing that killing wolves can result in more conflict because of the breakdown it causes in the social structure and size of wolf packs,” said Tim Coleman, executive director of the Kettle Range Conservation Groups. “If the agency is going to tell the public on TV news that it is focusing on nonlethal, it should put its money where its mouth is, pay attention to what science tells us and rescind the kill order.”

Washington’s wolves were driven to extinction in the early 1900s by a government-sponsored eradication program on behalf of the livestock industry. Since the early 2000s, the animals have started to make a slow comeback by dispersing into Washington from neighboring Idaho and British Columbia. But wolf recovery is still in its infancy, with only an estimated 52 wolves at the end of 2013. In 2012 the Wedge pack was killed in a highly controversial agency lethal control action over wolf-livestock conflicts on public land.

“It is essential that more wolves are not lost from the state’s tiny wolf population because of state-sanctioned lethal control actions that ignore the proven, nonlethal methods of conflict prevention,” said Nick Cady, legal director for Cascadia Wildlands.

The letter to the department was filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, Cascadia Wildlands, The Humane Society of the United States, Defenders of Wildlife, Western Environmental Law Center, Wolf Haven International, Kettle Range Conservation Group and The Lands Council.



For Immediate Release, August 23, 2014

Contact: Amaroq Weiss, Center for Biological Diversity, (707) 779-9613
Washington Department of Wildlife Secretly Sends Aerial Gunners for Wolf Pack

Agency Sends Helicopter to Gun Down Huckleberry Pack Despite Assurances to
Rely on Nonlethal Means to Curb Loss of Livestock

OLYMPIA, Wash.— Conservation groups learned today that the Washington Department of Wildlife has abandoned nonlethal measures to deter further loss of sheep and instead use a helicopter to gun down members of the Huckleberry wolf pack. The groups learned that the department was unsuccessful today, but plans to return at first light Sunday in southeast Stevens County.

“The department’s secretive weekend assault on this endangered wolf pack goes beyond the pale,” said Amaroq Weiss, West Coast wolf organizer with the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s unconscionable that a public agency would take action to kill an endangered species without notifying the public. These wolves belong to the public and decisions about whether they live or die ought to be made in the clear light of day.”

Between Aug. 11 and 12, 14 sheep were confirmed as killed by members of the Huckleberry pack in southwestern Stevens County. Department director Phil Anderson told members of the public and the Fish and Wildlife Commission that nonlethal measures were being deployed to deter further loss of sheep and provided no notice of the move to kill wolves. Moreover, when contacted by a concerned citizen today, department game division manager Dave Ware replied that he couldn’t talk about it.

“Nonlethal measures, such as range riders and moving the sheep, were being put in place and should have been allowed to work before the agency moved to kill wolves,” said Weiss. “With only 52 confirmed wolves in Washington, we can’t afford to kill any, particularly when nonlethal measures have yet to be fully tried.”

At a Fish and Wildlife Commission hearing on Aug. 15, department officials told the commission they had a range rider and multiple staff at the site to create a human presence that would scare wolves away. Department officials also said the band of 1,800 sheep would be moved to a new location. However, staff subsequently went home for a night or two and the sheep were not moved – nor were sheep carcasses removed – and there were subsequently four more sheep deaths on Aug 18 and 19.  As of today, the sheep band still has not been moved and sheep carcasses, which could draw in wolves, still remain.

On Aug. 20, Department Director Phil Anderson issued a kill order authorizing agency staff and the sheep rancher to kill any wolves in the vicinity of the sheep, even though most of the conflict-prevention measures the department said would be in place were not. The range rider was not on the ground until the morning of Aug. 21, almost a week after the department assured the commission of his presence, and the department had not accepted an offer from a conservation group of a loan of special lights that deter predators and are being used in other parts of the west.

On Aug. 21, eight conservation groups sent a letter to the department, urging the agency to continue efforts to deter wolves from killing more sheep using nonlethal means rather than killing wolves, as it did two years ago when seven members of the Wedge pack were killed.

“The Huckleberry Pack has pups that were born late this spring, making them only a few months old. If the adults are killed, those pups will starve to death,” said Weiss. “What kind of a public agency assures the public it is relying on nonlethal methods then secretly sends in aerial snipers to kill the pack while the public is sleeping in on a weekend morning?”

Background
The controversial killing of the Wedge pack in 2012 cost taxpayers $76,500; it is unknown how much it is costing the state to gun down the Huckleberry Pack. The sheep operator’s losses are estimated at $5,000 and, if he has been using adequate nonlethal conflict prevention methods prior to the losses, would be eligible for compensation from the state.

Washington’s wolves were driven to extinction in the early 1900s by a government-sponsored eradication program on behalf of the livestock industry. Since the early 2000s, the animals have started to make a slow comeback by dispersing into Washington from neighboring Idaho and British Columbia. But wolf recovery is still in its infancy, with only an estimated 52 wolves at the end of 2013.



Press Release: Center for Biological Diversity August 23, 2014
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2014/wolf-08-23-2014.html

BOOTS ON THE GROUND FOR THE HUCKLEBERRY PACK of NE Washington
The Huckleberry pack was set up to fail by WDFW and the Stevens County Cattleman’s Association. They did not keep their agreement and as of yet, have not removed the sheep as promised, and delayed a week before getting their range riders in place to protect the sheep. Non-lethal implementation was the agreed on deal, in the meantime the wolves did come in and there was no one or anything in place for a week to deter them. Now they have issued a kill order against them. They say 2 days of hazing with a chopper did not work, now the kill order. There is not a wolf on this planet that will not run from a low flying helicopter.
Several wildlife organizations filed an injunction against the kill order on the 22nd. On the 23rd learned that WDFG had abandoned the non lethal agreement and will proceed with the kill order.  They sent the helicopter out on Saturday and were unsuccessful. The helicopter and ground activity was reported in the wolf area this morning by Eastern Washington Wolves, with no updates available.
ACTIONS TO TAKE: 
1) Post a comment on WDFW here, if it appears disabled, you can still comment on their posts anyways! :https://www.facebook.com/WashingtonFishWildlife 
(2) tweet @WDFW @GovInslee ; 
(3) Post on Gov. Jay Inslee FB page; 
(4) Email Gov Inslee at governor@gov.wa.gov.; 
(5) Monday morning call Gov Inslee 360-902-4111 and Director of WDFW Phil Anderson: (360) 902-2200

Press Release: Center for Biological Diversity  August 22, 2014
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2014/wolf-08-22-2014.html

Press Release: Center for Biological Diversity August 23, 2014
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2014/wolf-08-23-2014.html

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK WOLVES
AND REPRESENTATIVE PETER DEFAZIO'S 
REQUEST FOR BUFFER ZONES

http://keepwolveslisted.blogspot.com/2014/08/reposted-from-island-press-field-notes.html


Reposted from Island Press Field Notes:

http://ipfieldnotes.org/wolves-in-paradise-yellowstones-wolves-in-transition/

WOLVES IN PARADISE? 
YELLOWSTONE’S WOLVES IN TRANSITION

The Lamar Canyon pack in 2012. 

Photo by Doug McLaughlin, used with permission.
http://keepwolveslisted.blogspot.com/p/yellowstone-park-wolves.html

August 12, 2014 · by Cristina Eisenberg · in Biodiversity & Wildlife, Cristina Eisenberg, Ecosystems

When Congress listed the gray wolf (Canis lupus) as endangered under the new Endangered Species Act in 1974, 
http://ipfieldnotes.org/an-imperfect-safety-net-for-carnivore-conservation/ it set the stage for a famous ecological experiment. Working within the Northern Rocky Mountain Recovery Area (NRM), which included Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, the federal government began to create a recovery plan. The plan called for wolf reintroduction in Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho.

In 1995, the reintroduced wolves hit the ground running. Scientists were on the ground, carefully documenting the ecological effects wolves sent rippling throughout the region as they restored this ecosystem from top to bottom. The subsequent recovery of willows (Salix spp.) and aspens (Populus tremuloides) that elk (Cervus elaphus) had been eating to death in the absence of wolves provides a powerful ecological lesson.
http://ipfieldnotes.org/wolves-in-a-tangled-bank/

The wolf reintroduction was an unprecedented success. By 2002 wolves had met recovery goals of at least 300 individuals and 30 breeding pairs in the three NRM states for at least three consecutive years. Since 2011, wolves have been delisted and hunted annually in the NRM.

Because Yellowstone wolves sometimes wander outside the park, the 2012/2013 wolf hunt, combined with other causes of mortality, caused a 12 percent drop in their population. Ecologists agree that this level of mortality is biologically sustainable in a species as resilient as the wolf. However, the impacts of the wolf hunt go far beyond numbers.

Before the hunt, Yellowstone’s wolves were one of the few unexploited North American wolf populations. They essentially lived in wolf paradise, with abundant food and little conflict with humans. The wolf hunt changed everything. Because hunting these wolves outside the park affects their behavior inside the park, the hunt ended the invaluable opportunity to study an unexploited wolf population as a scientific control against which exploited populations could be compared.

By hunting wolves we disrupt their society and destabilize their packs. Packs may split into smaller packs made up of younger animals, with a greater influx of unrelated individuals. And younger, less-complex packs may kill cattle or approach humans for food. The Lamar Canyon pack, formerly one of the most stable and viewable park packs, provides a case in point. When the gun smoke cleared from the 2012/13 wolf hunt, this pack’s story provides a cautionary tale about the unintended consequences of hunting wolves immediately outside national parks.

The '06 Female and Her Mate, 755M. Photo by Doug McLaughlin, used with permission.

Before the 2012/13 hunt, an illustrious pair led the Lamar Canyon pack: wolf 832, called the “’06 female” (for her birth year) and wolf 755M. Pack leadership also included wolf 754M, the beta male (755M’s brother), who’d vied for 832F’s admiration and then helped the alpha pair care for their pups. This trio engendered tremendous public affection. 
http://ipfieldnotes.org/journey-lessons-from-a-peripatetic-wolf/ Capable of taking down an elk by herself, ’06 quickly became a legend. She ranged widely through the Lamar Valley, yet she seldom left the park.

Wolf 754M. Photo by Doug McLaughlin, used with permission.

Tragedy struck in November 2012, when 754M met a hunter’s bullet in Wyoming, outside the park. The next month, the ’06 female also went down in the wolf hunt. Their entirely legal deaths played out publicly and created public outrage. But that was only the beginning of the trouble.

When breeding season began in late December, one of ’06’s daughters became the new alpha. However, because she was the alpha male’s daughter, she wouldn’t breed with him. And so now 755M, the alpha male, a great hunter with the most social experience, went looking for a mate. This left the Lamar Canyon pack unstable and leaderless.

By late January, the Lamar Canyon pack was going through major changes. Two of 755M’s daughters had attracted mates from other packs. Meanwhile, 755M, who’d been wandering, had found a mate, 759F from Mollie’s pack, and returned to his pack with her. But pack dynamics had shifted in his absence, so what he returned to was actually partly his old pack with some new wolves. The new males turned on 759F, killed her, and ran 755M off. By April 2013, 755M’s daughters were both pregnant and preparing for birth, and the pack was spending lots of time outside the park. Biologists occasionally observed 755M in Lamar Valley with two other wolves.

Eventually ’06’s daughters had their pups. While at first this seemed an example of wolf resilience, further events demonstrate how ’06’s and 754’s deaths disrupted this pack’s social stability. In August 2013, wolf 820F, ’06’s two-year-old daughter, left the pack under hostile pressure from her older sisters. That she’d spent her entire life in the park and was very used to people led her to make a foolish choice. She started hanging out in Jardine, Montana. When she turned to raiding chicken coops for food, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (FWP) killed her.

The above wolf deaths and others occurred because, for the 2012/13 hunting season, FWP removed the partial buffer outside the park where wolves couldn’t be hunted. After the deaths of the ’06 female and 754M in late 2012, the FWP Commission tried to close areas adjacent to the park to hunting and trapping because too many Yellowstone wolves were being killed. When anti-wolf groups sued, FWP removed the buffer. This left park wolves vulnerable in places like Gardiner, Montana, an elk wintering ground immediately outside Yellowstone. This July, Congressman Peter DeFazio requested a wolf buffer zone around Yellowstone. (Please see press release below * )

In 2014, the Lamar Canyon pack denned and produced pups. 755M remains a lone wolf. While the Lamar Canyon pack’s ultimate fate remains uncertain, its short-term response to the wolf hunt demonstrates both resilience and great instability in the face of challenges. A reinstated buffer would return these and other Yellowstone wolves to being a protected research population and fully realizing their ecological role.

Cristina Eisenberg

About Cristina Eisenberg

Tags: biodiversity, conservation, endangered species, population, resilience, wildlife, wolves

http://ipfieldnotes.org/wolves-in-paradise-yellowstones-wolves-in-transition/

*DEFAZIO CALLS ON INTERIOR TO PROTECT GRAY WOLVES IN OR NEAR NATIONAL PARKS

Jul 8, 2014 Press Release
Yellowstone gray wolves have been killed by hunters just outside of park boundaries
Washington, D.C. – Today, Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee Peter DeFazio (D-OR) sent a letter urging Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to create critical buffer zones to protect endangered gray wolves in or around our National Parks. In 2011, Congress legislated a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposal to prematurely delist the gray wolf in Idaho, Montana, parts of Oregon and Washington when that proposal failed to pass muster in the courts.  Since then numerous wolves have been killed just outside park borders.

In the letter, DeFazio writes, “Even with the delisting rule, killing or trapping wolves is prohibited inside Yellowstone National Park. However, gray wolves do not respect invisible park boundaries and once the wolves cross out of the park and onto bordering lands, there are myriad inconsistent state regulations that allow hunters to kill wolves on sight; in some instances without limit.  As a result, the Yellowstone wolves are being shot and killed right outside the borders of the park.” 

For over three years, the population of gray wolves in Yellowstone has steadily decreased as a result of hunting-related deaths. According to wildlife biologists, Yellowstone’s wolf population dropped 25% between 2011 and the end of 2012. The National Park Service reports that as of March 1, 2013, 12 Yellowstone National Park wolves were legally harvested just outside the park borders. To highlight one specific case, in late 2012, the New York Times reported that the renowned alpha wolf, 832F, was shot and killed just 15 miles outside park boundaries in Wyoming.  

In the letter, DeFazio requests that the Department of the Interior (DOI) undertake a concerted and coordinated effort to work with the states to establish a uniform wolf safety zone or buffer around Yellowstone National Park.  He also asks DOI to establish an Interagency Wolf Task Force for the purpose of coordinating across the federal and state agencies to protect park wolves from adverse effects of trophy hunting and other causes of human-induced mortality in all National Parks with wolf populations.

Today, DeFazio also sent a letter to Director of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) Dan Ashe, questioning his defense of the science used to justify the Service’s recent proposal to remove critical protections for endangered gray wolves in the remaining lower 48 states. In March, DeFazio led a bipartisan letter co-signed by 73 House members urging Secretary Jewell to withdraw the flawed proposal. The letter came on the heels of an independent peer review that found the Service failed to use the “best available science” when it drafted the proposed rule that would remove Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for gray wolves in the continental United States.

“In press accounts, you have indicated you have no second thoughts on the delisting proposal and dismissed the peer review as being too technical, despite the fact that the peer reviewers answered the questions that the Service put to them. It is remarkable that we would spend 20 years or more committed to the recovery of this species only to see it vanish well before the job has been completed. That is not only irresponsible, it is shameful, and I do not believe it is the goal of the ESA.  In short, I find the morphing explanation based upon science which has failed a peer review to be unworthy of your agency,” DeFazio wrote to Director Ashe.

The Service’s proposed rule to delist in the lower 48 has generated over 1 million comments since 2013. DeFazio recently led a CREDO Mobile petition to urge the Service to rescind the rule that generated nearly 160,000 signatures.
http://www.credomobilize.com/petitions/respect-science-and-maintain-endangered-species-act-protections-for-gray-wolves?sp_ref=34069603.4.4152.t.0.3&source=tw_sp

A copy of the Jewell letter can be found here.
http://democrats.naturalresources.house.gov/sites/democrats.naturalresources.house.gov/files/2014-07-08_PAD%20to%20Sec%20%20Jewell%20re_gray%20wolf.pdf

A copy of the Ashe letter can be found here.
http://democrats.naturalresources.house.gov/sites/democrats.naturalresources.house.gov/files/2014-07-08_PAD%20to%20Dir%20%20Ashe%20re_gray%20wolf.pdf

Background on DeFazio’s actions on gray wolf issues, click here.
http://democrats.naturalresources.house.gov/issue/gray-wolves

#KEEPWOLVESLISTED

#RELISTWOLVES

An open letter, reposted, in response to Director Dan Ashe's view of Gray Wolf Recovery in the U.S.A.

"Anyone who has accustomed himself 

to regard the life of any living creature as worthless 

is in danger of arriving also at the idea of worthless human lives." 

~ Dr. Albert Schweitzer via Wild for Wildlife and nature, FB

http://keepwolveslisted.blogspot.com/2014/08/save-wolves.html

Everything in italic type here is my responsibility.
All wolf fact information is 
provided by Predator Defense and Lobos of the Southwest.
Below that is from Wolves leaving comments.

Everything else is Mr. Ashe's opinion. 

If you feel up to it, you can leave a comment for Mr.Ashe here about his opinion regarding the well being of our Gray Wolves concerning his plan to delist them as endangered species. In spite of the fact that PEER review said he did not use the best science when arriving at his proposed decision to turn wolves over to state led management, which, so far, has a history of wiping wolves out instead of protecting them : 
http://www.fws.gov/director/dan-ashe/index.cfm/2013/6/7/Gray-wolves-are-recovered-next-up-the-Mexican-wolf#more

THEN, you can take action and tell Mr.Ashe's state management partners in Idaho that you think wolf and coyote killing contests are not really management, they are simply a cruel waste of canid life. Thank you.

Actions for Idaho's wolf and coyote killing contests here:

http://keepwolveslisted.blogspot.com/2014/08/relistwolves-another-wolfcoyote-killing.html 

Dan Ashe Director of USFWS 
Open Spaces: A Blog of the Director's Corner of US Fish and Wildlife Services

Gray Wolves are Recovered; Next Up, the Mexican Wolf
Posted At : June 7, 2013 10:06 AM | Posted By : Trott, Matthew E
Related Categories: Gray_wolf, Endangered Species Act, plains bison, director_blog, Mexican wolf, Wolves wolf

We are proposing to remove gray wolves from the list of threatened and endangered species throughout the United States and Mexico. Photo by Gary Kramer/USFWS

As many of you probably know, my dad had a great, 37-year career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and he describes the outfit as a collection of people who get things done -- doers.  Nowhere is that trait more proudly displayed than in our four decade effort to restore the gray wolf to the American landscape, bringing the species back from extirpation and exile from the contiguous United States.

I'm the 16th Director of the Service. It was the 10th, John Turner, a Wyoming rancher and outfitter, appointed by a Republican President, who signed the record of decision that set in motion this miraculous reintroduction and recovery. It's never been easy. We've had critics, fair and unfair. We've had great partners. Sometimes they have been one in the same. But this organization and its people have been constant. Steadfast. Committed. Professional. Determined. Now add successful!

More information on the wolf recovery
This great predator again roams the range, ridges and remote spaces of the Northern Rocky Mountains and the Western Great Lakes in one of the spectacular successes of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  These recovered populations are not just being tolerated, but are expanding under professional management by our state partners.


Ok, here is what we find for "professional management by our state partners" , Mr. Ashe:

Removal from Federal Endangered Species List Spells Doom for American Wolves

On April 15, 2011, when President Obama signed the federal budget into law, he also signed the death warrants for hundreds of wolves. Montana Senator Jon Tester had added a last-minute wolf-killing rider to the budget bill that removed wolves from the federal Endangered Species Act and prohibited further judicial review. As a result, conservation interests are no longer able to legally intervene.

Never in the history of the Endangered Species Act has a species been delisted because of politics. Wildlife management and politics have hit a new low and established a dangerous precedent. Now management of wolves is left to states, and already state managers are opening hunting seasons on wolves who have just managed to gain a toe hold and reoccupy territory from which they were extirpated by ranching and agricultural interests just a few decades ago.

Wolf management has swung full circle in 50 years from extermination to recovery, and now back again. Free roaming packs of wolves in America will be lucky to survive, much less thrive, anywhere outside of the national parks, where they are protected.  Hunters and trappers are gaining access to those wolves as well, by lying in wait for them when they cross the park boundaries, as has happened in Montana.

Please find and read the following for more details, if you have need to do so:

Groups Lay Out Opposition to Proposed Wolf Settlement - Billings Gazette, March 23, 2011
True Cost of Budget Deal Will Be Paid in Blood...of Gray Wolves - Christian Science Monitor, April 19, 2011
'Famous' Wolf Is Killed Outside Yellowstone - New York Times, Dec. 8, 2012
Montana Officials Shut Down Wolf Hunting, Trapping near Yellowstone - Missoulian, December 10, 2012
Montana: Wolf Hunts Are Banned in Areas Bordering Yellowstone - New York Times, Dec. 10, 2012
Mourning an Alpha Female - New York Times, Dec. 10, 2012
Judge Keeps Wolf Hunting Season Going outside Yellowstone National Park - OregonLive.com, Jan. 18, 2013
Letter against "delisting" wolves, sent by 16 of nation's top scientists to Sally Jewell, Secretary, Department of the Interior - May 21, 2013
After Years of Progress, A Setback in Saving the Wolf - New York Times, June 1, 2013
In Wake of Delisting, Wolf Slaughter Continues Relentlessly; States Nationwide Getting Set for 2013–14 Hunting and Trapping Seasons
All links can be found here: 
http://predatordefense.org/wolves.htm

The "war on wolves" is rapidly spreading across America.  More aggressive hunting and trapping seasons are slated in states where wolves are already delisted.   In anticipation of nationwide delisting, other states are amping up anti-wolf actions in preparation for killing seasons. Please act now to stop this travesty

Each state is using both of their two wildlife decision-making bodies—the state legislature and the fish and wildlife commission—to put wolf-killing laws and regulations into place.  Ranching and hunting interests historically dominate state commissions and legislatures, so the playing field is not level.  It is therefore no surprise that state wildlife management decisions are based on political special interests, as opposed to science.

Utah and South Dakota Prepared to Set Wolf Seasons, Even without Established Populations 
Utah and South Dakota do not have established wolf populations, but that has not stopped state lawmakers from moving bills in preparation for killing seasons.  South Dakota has reclassified wolves from "protected" to "varmint" status, meaning they will have no protections and will be treated like rodents.  Part of the state's population was included under the Great Lakes wolf delisting, the remainder will lose protection when/if the feds delist the entire species nationally. 

Like South Dakota, Utah is racing to get ready to kill wolves in anticipation of national delisting, but the sought after status there is "game animal." In the small northern corner of South Dakota where wolves lost protection when Northern Rockies wolves were delisted, no wolves are permitted to become established.

Two Years of No Protection is Killing Northern Rockies Wolves

IDAHO - Before delisting, Idaho had the largest wolf population in the Rockies, at approximately 1,000. It also kills more wolves than any other state in the Rockies.  By May 28, 2013, the end of the second year of trophy hunting and trapping seasons, a grand total of 697 Idaho wolves had been killed.  Keep in mind these figures do not include hundreds killed for damage control by government and private sources.  Read more

Idaho's 2013-14 wolf season was the first to get underway.  As of August 20, 2013, three wolves have been killed by hunters on private land in one unit already open to hunting.

Idaho wolf tags sell for a bargain at just $11.50, with 5 hunting and 5 trapping tags allowed per hunter, no quotas in much of the state, and very few hunting restrictions.  For more details, visit Idaho Fish and Game. 

MONTANA - Montana is fast becoming the most wolf-aggressive state in the nation. Both their legislature and their wildlife commission have actively worked at liberalizing wolf killing by increasing the length of the kill season, allowing the first wolf trapping season (which permits up to three wolves to be killed per trapper), and no longer imposing a statewide kill limit.  By the season's end on February 28, 2013, 391 Montana wolves had been killed by hunters since delisting. 

Hunters and trappers even waited outside the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park to kill protected wolves, including some wearing GPS collars being studied by scientists within the park.  Among those wolves killed was the alpha female of the famous Lamar Canyon pack who was well known to and photographed by tourists.  The outcry resulted in a temporary hunting/trapping closure which was quickly overturned by the courts, and finally a law was passed making boundary areas officially open to hunting and trapping.  More legislation is moving rapidly to reduce restrictions to all predator hunting and to allow extreme wolf killing practices, such as the use of snares, electronic calls, and even the skinned carcasses of pack members as bait. For more details, read these articles:

Montana fast-tracks bill to expand wolf hunting - The Spokesman Review, Feb. 8, 2013
Judge keeps wolf hunting season going outside Yellowstone National Park - OregonLive.com, Jan. 18, 2013
Montana officials shut down wolf hunting, trapping near Yellowstone - Missoulian, December 10, 2012
Montana: Wolf Hunts Are Banned in Areas Bordering Yellowstone - New York Times, Dec. 10, 2012
Mourning an Alpha Female - New York Times, Dec. 10, 2012
'Famous' Wolf Is Killed Outside Yellowstone - New York Times, Dec. 8, 2012

Learn more about how Montana has ignored science to support bad wolf management decisions and sign the petition to Montana's governor to help their wolves. Details on Montana wolf hunting policies are available on the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks website. 

WYOMING - Wolves lost federal protection in Wyoming in September 2012, thanks to the urging of the Obama administration, which is courting the wrong group of voters. In spite of the fact that Wyoming ranchers lost only 26 cows to wolves (out of a total of 1.3 million head of cattle in the state), agriculture special interests are controlling wolf management decisions. 

The status of wolves in Wyoming has plummeted from endangered to "predator," meaning in the majority of the state wolves can be shot on sight. Shooting, aerial gunning, trapping and just about any other kill method is permitted  on the 330 estimated wolves in the state. Even females and pups are fair game. 

As of August 16, 2013, hunters have killed 92 wolves, including as many as 10 wolves who strayed from the protected boundaries of Yellowstone National Park (YNP) where they were being studied.

Yellowstone Park Research Wolves Killed by Hunters - Science Magazine, Nov. 26, 2012
'Famous' Wolf Is Killed Outside Yellowstone - New York Times, Dec. 8, 2012
Mourning an Alpha Female - New York Times, Dec. 10, 2012

For further information visit the Wyoming Fish & Game Department website.

Midwest Gray Wolves Also Under the Gun

In January 2012, wolves in Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin were placed under the control of state managers, with frightening results. You can see the true "sporting" nature of wildlife decision-makers at work in Michigan, but wolf advocates are fighting back and have taken up the gauntlet to prevent or mitigate wolf-killing seasons in the Great Lakes.

MINNESOTA - Minnesota's 3,000 wolves form the largest population in the lower 48 states.  By the end of the barely three-month hunting and trapping seasons in early 2013—which include traps, snares, baiting and electronic calling—413 wolves were killed, exceeding the kill quota of 400. Read more on the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources website. 

Because the wolf population has declined 25 percent since 2009, wolf hunting has been scaled back for the 2013-14 season.  The kill quota has been reduced to 220 (about half of last year), and approximately half the number of tags will be issued this year. 

Activists are rallying for Minnesota wolves. Last year a bill was introduced that would have established a 5 year moratorium on the wolf hunt.  Maybe it will pass both houses this year.  Howling for Wolves, a Minnesota advocacy organization, is largely responsible for this remarkable effort.  KEEP UP THE PRESSURE! 

WISCONSIN - Wisconsin's aggressive hunting and trapping seasons have taken a toll on their wolf population, estimated at 850 before delisting.  By the close of the 2012-13 season, Wisconsin hunters and trappers had killed 117 wolves (the entire quota of 116, plus one more).  Half again as many wolves would have been killed, but the Ojibwe tribe did not open a wolf season or fill their kill quota. Way to go Ojibwe tribe!

Wisconsin is the only state where wolves are hunted with packs of dogs.  A bill to prohibit the use of dogs to hunt wolves was introduced and supported by advocacy groups in 2012.  A legal battle around the extreme practice of pitting dogs against their wild ancestors has waged since the wolf hunt began, and we suspect it will continue this legislative session.

Additional information is available on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources website.

MICHIGAN - Dirty politics is keeping wolf killing going in Michigan in spite of public opposition, but it is being challenged by a dedicated group of activists.  In 2012, after 40 years of federal Endangered Species Act protection, the wolf population of Michigan was estimated at 700, with only four verified depredations on livestock by wolves in the state that year.  But the Michigan legislature passed a bill declaring wolves a "game animal" in preparation for establishing killing seasons. A coalition of activists quickly organized to launch a ballot measure to kill the wolf season and miraculously managed to collect 255,000 signatures to qualify the  referendum in a matter of weeks. 

Sadly, their efforts were undermined by anti-wolf legislators who quickly fast-tracked a bill that undercut the advocates' tireless work.  In May 2013 the governor happily signed the bill into law before the signatures could even be verified. The law allows the Department of Natural Resources to establish game animal status, thus nullifying the voters' ability to challenge the hunt because decisions made by the governor-appointed commission cannot be addressed or changed by citizens' initiatives.

Michigan’s dedicated activists have met this challenge by launching a second referendum to repeal this law and restore citizens’ ability to have a voice in what species are hunted and trapped in Michigan.  Signatures are being collected to qualify this measure for the 2014 ballot.  WAY TO GO MICHIGOANS! 

Information provided by Predator Defense:
http://predatordefense.org/wolves.htm#States

Today, for one reason, and one reason only, we are proposing to remove the gray wolf from the list of threatened and endangered species throughout the United States and Mexico -- they are no longer in danger of extinction now or in the foreseeable future.

Due to our steadfast commitment, gray wolves in the Lower 48 now represent a 400-mile southern range extension of a vast contiguous wolf population that numbers more than 12,000 wolves in western Canada and about 65,000 wolves across all of Canada and Alaska. Canadian and U.S. wolves interact and move freely between the two nations.

Of course, the gray wolf is not everywhere it once was, nor can it be; think Denver, or Minneapolis, or Salt Lake City, or even the now grain- and livestock-dominated American Plains. It's not everywhere it can be, but our work has created the potential that it may be one day. 

One thing, though, is certain: It is no longer endangered or threatened with extinction.  The ESA has done its job. Broader restoration of wolves is now possible. Indeed, it is likely. As we propose to remove ESA protections, states like Washington and Oregon are managing expanding populations under protective state laws.

And as in almost every aspect of our work, there is vigorous debate.  Can a species be considered “recovered” if it exists in only a portion of its former range, or if significant habitat is yet unoccupied?  Our answer is “yes” and we don’t need to look far for other examples.

Consider the plains bison, another magnificent, iconic animal that once roamed and ruled North American plains, coast to coast. We aren’t certain how many, but possibly 75 million. Today, there are about half a million, and they inhabit a fraction of their historical range.

But are they threatened or endangered?  No.  And in 2011, we denied a petition to give the bison Endangered Species Act protection. Wild populations are secure and growing. It doesn’t mean we don’t care about bison; it means they do not need the protections of the ESA.

Like the bison, the gray wolf no longer needs those protections.

Some say we’re abandoning wolf recovery before it is complete. That couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, we’re proposing to hand over the management of these keystone predators to the professionals at the state and tribal wildlife agencies. We’ve been working hand-in-glove with these folks to recover the gray wolf. Their skill helped bring gray wolves back, and now they’ll work to keep wolves as a part of the landscape for future generations.

Here are the Wolf hunt tallies since 2011, this is what the "professionals at the state and tribal wildlife agencies" have accomplished for Gray Wolf Recovery :

Wolf Sport Kills Since 2011 Delisting
GRAND TOTAL reported kills: 1,705 wolves and counting (as of 8/21/13). 1,158 of these wolves were killed during the 2012-13 season alone.

NORTHERN ROCKIES reported kills: 1,173 wolves
- Idaho: 698 wolves (454 hunter kills + 244 trapper kills). Season closed 3/31/13. The 2013-14 season is already open with 3 kills as of 8/20/13.
- Montana: 391 wolves (294 hunter kills + 97 trapper kills). Season closed 2/28/13. 
- Wyoming: 92 wolves as of 8/16/13.
GREAT LAKES kills: 529 wolves
- Minnesota: 412 wolves (213 hunter kills + 199 trapper kills). Season closed. 
- Wisconsin: 117 wolves (55 hunter kills + 62 trapper kills). Season closed.

NOTE: This kill tally does not include the scores of wolves slaughtered by federal and state predator control programs. USDA Wildlife Services data for fiscal year 2011 showed a total of 353 wolves killed in the states, with 200 in Minnesota alone.

I’ve always liked the analogy of the ESA as biodiversity’s emergency room.  We are given patient species that need intensive care.  We stabilize them; we get them through recovery.  Then we hand them to other providers who will ensure they get the long-term care that they need and deserve.

We have brought back this great icon of the American wilderness. And as we face today's seemingly insurmountable challenges, today's critical voices, today's political minefields, let this success be a reminder of what we can accomplish.  We can work conservation miracles, because we have.  The gray wolf is proof.

Now it’s time for us to focus our limited resources on Mexican wolf recovery and on other species that are immediately threatened with extinction.  
That is why we also proposed today to continue federal protection and expand recovery efforts for the Mexican wolf, by designating it as an endangered subspecies under the ESA and proposing modifications to the regulations governing the existing nonessential experimental population.

We have received good news on the Mexican wolf recently – the 2012 population count showed a record high number of Mexican wolves in the wild.  We have a long way to go, but we are seeing success, and we will apply the same steadfast commitment, the same dedication and the same professionalism that has been the hallmark of our gray wolf success.

By employing the full protections of the ESA for the Mexican wolf, I am confident that one day we’ll be celebrating their full recovery just like we are, today, with the gray wolf.

I don't know, Mr.Ashe, doesn't look to me that 75 Mexican Gray Wolves in the wild is full recovery.
http://www.mexicanwolves.org/
Especially given the fact that FWS just captured and removed 3 of them from the wilderness where you are sure that their "full recovery" will be met with success. 
Press Release: With Government Shutdown Over, Feds, Arizona Resume Taking Endangered Mexican Gray Wolves Out of Wild 
Three Wild-born Wolves in Arizona, New Mexico Targeted to Live Out Lives in Captivity October 21, 2013
http://www.mexicanwolves.org/index.php/news/1138/51/Press-Release-With-Government-Shutdown-Over-Feds-Arizona-Resume-Taking-Endangered-Mexican-Gray-Wolves-Out-of-Wild
http://www.mexicanwolves.org/


Comments Comments (83)  | Send Send   |  2898 Views

margaret's Gravatar I question the description by F&W as wolf restoration being "successful." Unless successful means that ranchers are once again complaining about wolves and want to be able to shoot them on site--which delisting will most certainly allow them to do. So, here we go again. Ranchers shooting wolves is exactly what led to the near extinction in the first place. I guess that we'll see the predictably sharp decline in wolves in the next few years as a justification of F&W to suggest their inclusion on the endangered species list. 

How ridiculous.

# Posted By margaret | 6/7/13 1:51 PM
Dave Schmitt's Gravatar Can you really look yourself in the mirror and believe that the "wildlife professionals" in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho have the best interests and long term survival of the wolves at heart? The public statements by many of their elected officials would say otherwise.

# Posted By Dave Schmitt | 6/7/13 2:51 PM
emmief's Gravatar This is a travesty pure an simple. You are setting the gray wolves up for certain annihilation if you remove them from the endangered species list and federal protections. The ranchers have had their way once again and it will be open season on the gray wolf. Rescind this disgusting, scientifically flawed plan now.

# Posted By emmief | 6/7/13 4:45 PM
Very disappointed.'s Gravatar Kind of disgusted about your recommending removal of the wolves from the endangered species act. I wonder how long it will take for them to be near extinction again? Probably not long. Too many people view wildlife as nothing. It's a shame. Also the methods used to "hunt" them are not hunting. Traps, poisoning, gassing. Pretty brutal. Who do you work for?

# Posted By Very disappointed. | 6/7/13 7:04 PM
Rick Meier's Gravatar You have got to be kidding this article is so full of false info its almost funny ,when republicans stop using the wolf as a pawn for their actions against the Obama Admin. it will be time to delist, until then keep them protected,Wis wants to increase their killing quota to 375 this year, MT wants more,WY is a shoot on sight,you want to delist,really???????

# Posted By Rick Meier | 6/7/13 7:04 PM
Steven Rollner's Gravatar I'm sorry, this decision is in error of sound science. If you think the gray wolf is going to maintain sustainable numbers, unprotected from hunters, you have CLEARLY not learned from the past.
It is outrageous that the gray wolf is being delisted just at a time when we have been able to bring them back. 

How can ANY animals survive without federal protection when the human population is so out of control and in the billions! Pushing all other animals out of their habitats. I don't think any species left on this planet out numbers humans unless you are Ant.

You are making a big mistake here.

- Steven Rollner
California

# Posted By Steven Rollner | 6/7/13 9:15 PM
Shawn's Gravatar Ranchers have undue influence over State legislatures and it will be open season on wolves.All the funds and effort to bring back the wolf will be wasted.This action is shameful.

# Posted By Shawn | 6/7/13 9:26 PM
Mike Palaima's Gravatar Without the protection afforded by the endangered species act, wolves will once again become, almost instant targets for the most egregious forms of harvesting...live leg trapping, baiting, den kills, poisoning. Not to mention a good old bullet to the head. Than gov will react again, in its ponderous fashion taking to much time to do the population any good. Meanwhile self congratulatory bureaucrats will put out politically neutral comments like the one here, falling and fawning all over themselves. We citizens know that without federal oversight, sharp declines in populations will occur, so why do it? Manage the wolves, USFWS, do not abrogate your responsibilities, as you have just done.

# Posted By Mike Palaima | 6/7/13 9:35 PM
Nicky's Gravatar Do you seriously believe that once these beautiful animals are delisted that each state will successfully protect them? No, once they are off the list there will be people lining up to hunt them. They need to stay on the endangered species list because they are just that.

# Posted By Nicky | 6/7/13 10:34 PM
Tom Proett's Gravatar I think Gray Wolves and the Mexican Wolf are still too rare to delist from the endangered status.

# Posted By Tom Proett | 6/7/13 11:28 PM
Kim Frohlinger's Gravatar It is an absolute travesty to state that the wolf recovery has been successful. The partial delisting two years ago led to 1700 wolf killing by ranchers and government officials who believe the only good wolf is a dead one. This latest turn will result in the decimation of small, stabilizing populations which still have a long way to go. Their social structure is threatened, as is the species very existence. Shameful.

# Posted By Kim Frohlinger | 6/7/13 11:41 PM
's Gravatar Now it's open season on one of God's majestic creatures.....shame on you~

# Posted By | 6/8/13 3:05 AM
Warren Miller's Gravatar What a shame. One of the few animals I can think of to be brought back from near extinction (by the hand of man) to face the same fate again from greedy ranchers and so called sportsman, hunting to kill something for fun. Unlike the wolf killing for food.

# Posted By Warren Miller | 6/8/13 11:25 AM
Brian Cole's Gravatar I have great respect for your organization, but I have some serious doubts about the plan to delist the Grey Wolf. From numbers that I could find on the internet, around 500 wolves were killed last year in the previously delisted areas. That's nearly 10% of the entire population and much larger fraction of the population in the delisted areas. I don't see how such large yearly hunting losses never mind the numbers killed for other reasons can be considered sustainable. Especially when there can be potential natural pressures on the populations due to disease, climate, and collapse of their ecosystem. 

If the states were to establish reasonable hunting limits and were to truly embrace the the establishment of robust populations, I would agree with the plan to delist. But, there's every evidence that the states plan to keep the populations as low as they can without triggering a re-listing of the wolf.

# Posted By Brian Cole | 6/8/13 12:21 PM
William huard's Gravatar The American people are not stupid. I know several career USFWS people with longer time in with the USFWS. When I ask one of a dozen questions there is SILENCE.. Your own people can't defend this policy...page 81 of your own draft rule states that 2/3 of wolf poaching goes unreported. Mech and others say this is a major threat to wolf recovery and more importantly to wolves regaining former habitat. Read your own draft rule....we have the same enemies of biodiversity- ranchers and trophy sport hunters spreading the hysteria. Meanwhile- the very job that you occupy was the result of a political arrangement between two ranchers....mead and Salazar.... Nice science based wolf plan in Wyoming....wolves shot or killed by any means any reason in 85% of the state...bottlenecked in one small corner of the state- and we can't even protect our famous Yellowstone collared wolves from the wildlife killers. Resign mr ashe

# Posted By William huard | 6/8/13 12:22 PM
Bonnie Wilson's Gravatar I believe we should still protect the wolves.
They are very important to out enviroment.

# Posted By Bonnie Wilson | 6/8/13 12:25 PM
pj's Gravatar "we’re proposing to hand over the management of these keystone predators to the professionals at the state and tribal wildlife agencies".

Wow. The history of this litigation is not something that gives me confidence. I feel that turning the fate of these magnificent hunters, key elements of nature's balance, over to humans - again - who have their own agenda about wolves is wrong-headed Pollyannism at best, and self-serving political drivel at worst. Comparing 65,000 wolves to 500,000 bison is comparing apples to oranges. Bison are not predatory and do not control a food chain hierarchy. No one is killing off bison these days. But neither species can survive "modern" civilization without appropriate, enlightened supervision. Abandoning wolves to ranchers is not enlightened policy. 

Just my 2c.
# Posted By pj | 6/8/13 1:07 PM
Jeanne Rasmussen's Gravatar Turning "management" of wolves over to the states has been disastrous. They aren't managing they are slaughtering without considering how its done(torturing by gut shooting, trapping and snaring), when its done (breeding and denning seasons when pups are born,) and not providing buffer zones outside National Parks. If a wolf travels to a neighboring state it is endangered in that state and should not be killed. It's within its former range and habitat. The Federal Agency that you oversee is also accountable to what the public wants, not just hunters, trappers, and special interest groups with big money. We pay taxes on public lands and in National Parks and it is only right and just that we, the people, have some say in the delisting and killing of wolves. An agency that calls itself steadfast, intelligent, and professional is not collectively using information gathered by scientists and biologists with their scientific facts that the recovery of wolves is not complete.

# Posted By Jeanne Rasmussen | 6/8/13 1:10 PM
Kerry's Gravatar This is beyond sad and disgusting, you have sold out our heritage and our land to ranchers, shame on you. As a taxpayer and person who grew up in the west I can't believe my government is doing this and giving the states the greenlight to exterminate them, I will be donating all I can to the coming lawsuits to stop this.
# Posted By Kerry | 6/8/13 5:32 PM
Mary's Gravatar Please note that this is a terrible idea. Do not take the wolves off the Endangered Species List.

While this is open to public comment for 90 days, I hope that many US citizens will write in to express their disagreement with this measure.

# Posted By Mary | 6/8/13 5:48 PM
Dianna Posner's Gravatar The supposed intent was state management, which has turn into horrific atrocities against the wolves, with millions of unintended victims. This is due to out of control hunters, trappers and the USFWD setting traps and M-44's filled with cyanide in State, National, and Municipal Parks. Also setting traps on private land. They've made it unsafe for our children to play in their own back yards, go camping, or play in parks that are maintained with tax dollars. Not to mention the numerous domestic pets that have died due to traps. So why are they being allowed to continue this barbaric behavior? The only conclusion I can come to, is they want to exterminate all wolves.

# Posted By Dianna Posner | 6/8/13 6:57 PM
John Colgrove's Gravatar I was very disheartened to hear that this was going to be considered. I agree that much of the data you have gathered has been skewed by the fact that it has only been attributed to those agencies that have a stake in the de-listing of wolves rather than those that desire the continued protections. The numbers simply are not realistic and you know that if they are de-listed there will be an outright massacre by the states that have been tasked with "managing" their numbers. Just take one look at the comments on your Facebook page and read the sick and disturbed comments being posted by de-listing supporters. It's enough to make any caring human sick. I want the USFWS to provide substantial independent research data that argues that de-listing is an inappropriate move at this time. It is your responsibility to look at all the angles and, by the listing of contributors to your studies, you have failed miserably at that. You must continue and expand the protections, not eliminate them.

# Posted By John Colgrove | 6/8/13 7:35 PM
william huard's Gravatar The truth hurts mr ashe....I didn't expect you to publish my first post.....the american people are not fooled.....Look at your USFWS facebook page- there are thousands of pro=wolf posts...people that support biodiversity. You and President Obama are frauds
# Posted By william huard | 6/8/13 8:37 PM
Rick Meier's Gravatar Just another reason to boycott federal parks this administration and the people they appoint are not friendly to animals

# Posted By Rick Meier | 6/8/13 8:53 PM
's Gravatar how can you say they are in rcovery?you want to delist them and continue to slaughter them!you are wrong this decision is wrong and you will face a backlash and opposition to from the public.their protection needs to be extended to all the states includeing montana,idaho and minnesota.this drive to make them extinct needs to stop and the federal govt. needs to step in to help and protect these animals.you all will be held accountable for your actions by the people.

# Posted By | 6/10/13 11:15 AM
Rae's Gravatar Dropping federal protection now is gutting 40 years of hard work to bring back wolves from the brink of exinction. Since the delisting in the Northern Rockies and Great Lakes region about 1500 wolves have been hunted down in the name of management, which means open season on wolves. In my area the Northwest we have a very small population. If they are killed off we may never see them again.

# Posted By Rae | 6/10/13 11:28 AM
Jeff's Gravatar How can an animal that once numbered well into the hundreds of thousands be considered as "recovered" with a population now at a miniscule 6,100? The gray wolf once roamed EVERY state in North America and until that is accomplished again, protections MUST still be given! No changes should or need to occur in the protection of the gray wolf at this time.

# Posted By Jeff | 6/10/13 1:14 PM
Pam Kistler's Gravatar Please reconsider this most ill-advised move...to delist the wolf. I am also concerned about the "people" that hunt and torture our wolves. We have spent too much time and money to stop now! I sent you a letter today expressing my feelings. If there are too many wolves...provide birth control...not death!

# Posted By Pam Kistler | 6/10/13 3:31 PM
KC DeWinter's Gravatar Excuse me, but how is it good policy to hunt a species (wolves) to near extinction before you protect them, and then once, the species has recovered a bit, canceling their protection so they can be hunted to near extinction yet again? If we all managed our businesses and organizations the way you are running this program, we'd all be out of jobs. And that's exactly where all of you should be: fired for this mismanagement.

# Posted By KC DeWinter | 6/10/13 4:43 PM
KC DeWinter's Gravatar If you really want a proper dialogue, you should just post what people have to say. Instead, I posted a comment, and now it has to be "approved" before you will post it? Are you kidding me? This Comment function is a joke, and so is the management of this department. You are all supposed to be STEWARDS of the land, water and wildlife, not destroyers of it.

# Posted By KC DeWinter | 6/10/13 4:45 PM
Matt M's Gravatar When they Say populations have reached "record" amounts what is their comparison? Everything we have on record is from when they were endangered. Therefore, all we know is that they are around endangered levels, but slightly above from what we recorded and once thought endangered. Its based on no reality other then the fact that we don't have the budget or will power to keep up the good fight. Citizens are willing to chip in to save the wolves, so therefore, the government is responsible for doing so!

# Posted By Matt M | 6/10/13 5:28 PM
Joanne Favazza's Gravatar States have proven to be entirely incapable of “managing” wolves. The livestock and hunting industries are influencing state wolf policies, while science is ignored. And, the usual Big Bad Wolf fairy tales are being trotted out to justify the wolf slaughter. How is it sound or ethical “management” to kill wolves during breeding season, or kill pregant wolves, or hunt wolves with dogs? How is it sound or ethical “management” to allow the killing of wolves without a license in 80% of Wyoming? Politics, not science, has been driving this issue from the start. Biologists warned against Tester’s delisting rider. 16 of the nation’s top biologists have warned against delisting in the lower 48. Yet you continue to ignore these credible voices and pander to politicians and special interests. You and this administration are doing unprecedented damage to the ESA and to wildlife. It’s well past time for you to resign.

# Posted By Joanne Favazza | 6/10/13 6:06 PM
J Adams's Gravatar I am very concerned with your decision to delist Gray wolves. Turning the future of this species over to state legislatures will almost certainly guarantee that they will be hunted to near extinction again. Recent history in my own state indicates that this is the future, as they are already under pressure. If you look at population numbers present in the wild versus the number killed in the past few years in the name of "management", there is no way the population can sustain this kind of hit once the floodgates are opened. What science supports your conclusion?

# Posted By J Adams | 6/10/13 8:17 PM
leona firewolf's Gravatar this is wrong! you should not delisted the gray wolf from federal protection, it will be open season for the ranchers and trophy, sport hunters will have states plan to keep the populations as low as they can without triggering a re-listing of the wolf. please don't let this happen!.

# Posted By leona firewolf | 6/11/13 8:07 AM
Julie Long Gallegos's Gravatar I commented yesterday and subscribed to this but strangely, my commented hasn't posted, although I'm getting updates. So, I will try again. "Cowboy Ken" Salazar and his rancher buddies are now exposed for the cheats they are. Ranchers are gaming the Federal system of compensation for livestock loss to predators by grazing irresponsibly - not sheltering newborns in sheds, and not keeping adequate watch over herds. Even so, wolf predation accounts for less than 1 percent of livestock loss. And there have been only 2 cases of wolf-on-human attack in the lower 48 states in the last 50 years. We hear an awful lot about ranchers' rights, and hunters' rights - but what about my rights as a citizen and taxpayer to a protected wilderness and its inhabitants?

# Posted By Julie Long Gallegos | 6/11/13 12:20 PM
Dori Aravis's Gravatar This delisting is wrong and you know it. It is only being done to cater to a small special interest group (cattlemen & ranchers). The American public does not want to see wolves slaughtered. DO NOT DO THIS!!

# Posted By Dori Aravis | 6/11/13 1:52 PM
Ron Fitzpatrick's Gravatar The States management plans for the Gray Wolf are to kill it. Wyoming has a shoot on sight policy, Wisconsin wants to use dogs to hunt wolves and is planning on doubling their "quota" for their second wolf hunt. Why are all the conservation scientists being ignored? Delisting makes NO sense when they aren't even present in more than half the states.Us non-hunters would like to see the wolves run in the wild. Recall there is a Public Trust Doctrine that gives every citizen the right to enjoy the wildlife of this country. Frankly the people who want to see wolves thrive are far more numerous than those who want to Delist the Gray Wolf. You are betraying the Public Trust when mislead them into thinking the Gray Wolf is in no danger.

# Posted By Ron Fitzpatrick | 6/11/13 4:46 PM
Pam Kistler's Gravatar I agree with Julie Gallegoes...Where does the responsibility of the rancher come in ...they have been allowed to get away with this criminal behavior for too long! They need to take care of their animals...not on the backs of taxpayers and especially the wolves!

# Posted By Pam Kistler | 6/11/13 7:00 PM
lib's Gravatar Sad that USFWS think they can justify an ill-thought recommendation to delist wolves. Do you seriously think that the states who are already anti-wolf will "manage" the wolf population correctly?? Absolutely not! They will hunt them until they are all gone, and your idiotic recommendation will show just how well that worked out. Numbers and studies for each state are bought and paid for by the anti-wolf fish and game commissions--and Idaho's is the most corrupt by far. THey manipulate the numbers to satisfy the USFWS and then get their way. Maybe someday livestock and hunting interests will not be allowed to have their way and federal agencies will actually LISTEN to the majority of the folks who pay their salary. I pray that someone in the administration steps up ad sees this delisting proposal as the tragedy it will become.

# Posted By lib | 6/11/13 7:02 PM
's Gravatar Decision to remove the grey wolf from endangered list is a good decision. Many comments I have read on this site are based on emotion and not very well thought out or are based on not knowing the general environment the wolf survives in and where "sheltering newborns in sheds" is not possible. Keeping them protected until "they roam freely in all states", I guess we need to tear up all the Interstates and go back to "horse and buggy day", I believe the department has done an outstanding job in a difficult situation. Probably could have been delisted earlier, but that is only an opinion, I respect their hard work and open minded approach.

# Posted By | 6/12/13 9:50 AM
Dori Aravis's Gravatar So we brought grey wolves back so we could shoot them? Well, knowing our totally screwed up government, that makes perfect sense.
# Posted By Dori Aravis | 6/12/13 12:36 PM
Disgusted's Gravatar This is a complete travesty. The wolves are not recovered, and this allow a full blown slaughter of the few remaining wolves. Wolves are part of the balance of nature. Large corporate farmers and ranchers are not. I see nothing truthful in your blog. Constantly and needlessly killing the wolves reeks of political strong arming. Brutal, cruelty is the result.

# Posted By Disgusted | 6/12/13 7:37 PM
Kate's Gravatar There are no so called "professionals" waiting to take over the care of the grey wolf. You compare the ESA to an emergency room and yet you're kicking out your patient while he's still on life support. And you're kicking him right into an angry mob. The officials in charge of wildlife management in the states such as Wyoming, Montana and Idaho have no interest in seeing the wolf spread out into the rest of its former range. Their idea of conservation is shoot on site. Putting wolves back into the hands of these people will see them decline drastically and we'll be right back where we started again. This animal will be back on the ESA faster than you can say genocide.

# Posted By Kate | 6/12/13 10:48 PM
Carol's Gravatar As someone who lives outside of the US, I am appalled to keep reading the (in my view) justified criticisms of the Fish & Wildlife Service. The US has some of the most magnificent wildlife in the world and I despair at the minority who seem to have all the power to decide the fate of these magnificent creatures in the face of overwhelming public opinion against attempts yet again to exterminate them. They are sentient beings who deserve to be left alone. FWS is not fit for purpose.

# Posted By Carol | 6/13/13 3:47 AM
Pearl Rosenstein's Gravatar A recent artical in the Science section of the New York Times on Tuesday, June 11th, stated that more Pumas,(mountain lions), than ever before are migrating to the Rockies and west. If they used their collective heads, Republicans and ranchers would realize that wolves are not the only predatory animals responcible for ranchers problems. Apart from being beautiful animals, wolves are among the most intelligent of animals. They take only what they need to survive. They have the most tightly knit social order, And unlike humans, have as many young as they can feed, comfortably. Wolves are afraid of humans. They hide from us. They must be protected, not slaughtered. Ranchers can't blame the wolf for all their problems. But that seems to be their easy way out..There are other things they can do to protect their herds. One more thing, prey animals forage on grasses, less wolves, more prey animals, less foraging land.

# Posted By Pearl Rosenstein | 6/13/13 8:32 AM
Gerald Schuth's Gravatar Wildlife as animals are akin to the poorest people in our society. They need the government to protect them from the majority and the powerful. The previous comments listed express my concerns about this unnecessary action. If the federal government caretakers of wildlife can be cowed by the landowners, what chance would a respectable state wildlife professional have in the states which disparage the wolf.

# Posted By Gerald Schuth | 6/13/13 12:44 PM
Kim Frohlinger's Gravatar Wandering packs of feral dogs kill more livestock than wolves do, this is a proven fact. Perhaps these predators should be removed first. Wolves can be managed with guard dogs, ropes with fabric attached which scares them, and besides, it is not the rancher's land, it is the American Public's land and most of us want the wolves to recover their traditional ranges. Let the ranchers buy their own land, not lease it from us at ridiculously low rates; let them electrify their fences on their own private property. The ranchers think that the only good wolf is a dead one, and once delisted, the wolves are DOA.

# Posted By Kim Frohlinger | 6/13/13 1:06 PM
Julie Long Gallegos's Gravatar I'm responding to the person who opted to post entirely anonymously on 6/12, who questioned my posting of 6/11/13 and quoted me re: shedding of newborns. Thank you for reading my comment. I must have hit a nerve! You did not address my larger points - these facts (not emotion, but facts): 1. wolf predation accounts for less than 1 percent of all livestock losses in 2012 and 2. there have been only 2 cases of wolf-on-human attacks in the last 50 years. Re: shedding of newborn livestock - if the rancher can't afford to shed newborns, the rancher shouldn't be in the ranching business. 
My response to "anonymous" is that emotions are good things, they make thinking people want to analyze the emotional response. Here is a link to further that discourse.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=4785410988...

# Posted By Julie Long Gallegos | 6/13/13 1:07 PM
C. Stinson's Gravatar I have noticed far too many wolves with collars being killed in the photos being posted all over. The taking away of wolves from the endangered list, and the mass killings with no order or sense, is really pointing to an agenda. The agenda is to kill ALL wolves, with no regard to the environmental impact. I have read the so called reasons for "management"...and this goes to all predatory wildlife...and it boils down to the short term money of hunting tags, with no care in the world of future problems killing ALL of natures predators will cause. I see a tiny group of over moneyed 'hunters', killing off a majority of wildlife for a mere moment of thrill. I would like to enjoy living wildlife, not ugly dead 'trophys' in someones' house. Federal Wildlife Managements are really failing the majority of the population, catering to the microscopic minority. As for predation of cattle on those horrible ranches, who cares? I eat local meat from organic farms, its way better by far!

# Posted By C. Stinson | 6/13/13 4:06 PM
pj's Gravatar I am responding to the June 13, 2013 / 6:20 AM Comment made by: (anonymous) IP that a "Decision to remove the grey wolf from endangered list is a good decision." I disagree. Vehemently. Many comments are based on a thorough reading of the FWS analysis. I, for one, note that its proposed delisting the grey wolf is based on its conclusion (canis lupus) is not a "species". 
The preface says, "best available scientific and commercial information indicates that the currently listed entity (Canis lupus) is not a valid species under the Act". What a crock. 

I agree that we cannot reverse engineer the climate in which wolves originally existed, but we can certainly do something other than acquiesce to one-dimensional conclusions like this. In a nutshell, unless other experts can point out that FWS's redefining "species" as applied in the Act is incorrect or unsubstantiated, I fear the worst.
# Posted By pj | 6/13/13 4:11 PM
Dori's Gravatar I've been reading the comments - not one approves this stupid plan to delist wolves. Do you think we are ignorant and can't see where this decision is coming from? Special interest groups - cattlemen & trophy hunters. There is absolutely no scientific reason to hunt and kill these magnificant animals. This is greed and stupidity plain and simple. These wolves belong to the American people, not to the states and certainly not to the people who only want to kill them. Haven't wolves been tormented enough over history? In God's name, give them a break!!!!

# Posted By Dori | 6/13/13 5:14 PM
Michael J.G.'s Gravatar I don't believe this is the right choice for F&W to choose. After seeing photo's of "very satisfied hunters holding up their killed wolf's (most of them wearing radio tracking collars yet dead)because keeping track it's as important as getting to kill one of these great animals with a gun! So it's easy prey for the so called humans who take pride. This is a shame & it goes against what the F&W cite as their "mission statement,continuing the benefit of the American people". Also stating both a leader & trusted partner". The wolf represents what America once was, to be free & roam where ever it wanted. Now their bound by borders of states & ranchers who use our public lands as their own back yard for their cattle or other live stock. So for them the wolf is the bad guy because of these small number of citizens enforcing their right to carry arms & hunt & kill an animal that your agency predicts will continue to survive? As a former military combat veteran I resent the F&W position.

# Posted By Michael J.G. | 6/13/13 9:07 PM
's Gravatar When the wolves are taken off the list for protection, a BloodBath will ensue !! For whatever reason, many in this country would like to TORTURE the wolf and Why is this?? 
Where I grew up in the mts. Of NY (60s) we had some appearances of wild wolves. My friend & I were with our dogs. We would stand still, but I will tell you, there was NO occurances of attack!! They would sniff, stand with us but they wrre not angry. I say this because they abide by the Rules of Nature. Sit with thesecow/steer owners & figure out the Laws of Nature!!!!!! Don't kill the poor things....find other ways to keep them off the property.
And PLEASE don't let the helicopter cowboys run them into the ground & shoot them!!!!!!! That's totally cruel!!! Please consider what I say...they are nice red blooded creatures...the Lord will love you 4 it ;-)

# Posted By | 6/14/13 3:13 AM
nancy shinn's Gravatar Please reverse the proposed plan by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that would remove federal Endangered Species Act protections from wolves across most of the Lower 48 states. This plan would slam the door on gray wolf recovery before the job is done.The return of gray wolves to areas like the Northern Rockies and the western Great Lakes is one of the greatest conservation success stories of our time. But there are still few -- if any -- wolves in large portions of their former range, where scientists have determined suitable habitat exists. Wolf recovery in those places will depend on federal protections.Wolves are just beginning to make a comeback in Oregon and Washington, and a wolf recently made its way to California -- the first wolf in the state in more than 80 years. Lone wolves have also crossed into Utah, Colorado and multiple states in the Northeast. With federal protections removed, wolf recovery in these places is not likely to ever happen.

# Posted By nancy shinn | 6/14/13 1:55 PM
DoAZIDo27's Gravatar The ill-timed and reckless proposed action by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves would be a conservation nightmare. Delisting this iconic species would completely reverse decades of hard work to re-introduce the wolves to sustainable habitat. Rabid anti-wolf politics must NOT be allowed to overrule scientific facts and wildlife management principles and could lead to the extinction of this iconic species.

Already, more than 1,700 wolves have been brutally killed since Congress took away ESA protections in 2011. I urge you in the strongest possible terms to protect America’s gray wolves that are just coming back from the brink of eradication.

# Posted By DoAZIDo27 | 6/22/13 4:58 PM
Jessie Matheny's Gravatar The US congress has done something terrible to the face of the American Wildlife, specifically, to the Grey Wolves of the Rocky Mountains.For the first time in history, an animal has been removed from the Endangered Species List. This animal is the grey wolf. These animals have not been removed because they have bounced back in population.They have been removed because of the anti-wolf politics being pushed by local politicians in the Rocky Mountain Area including Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. People are living in the dark ages with their ideas. They are living in fear of the less than 5,000 wolves that inhabit our entire country (as of 2008, before anti-wolf politics).They have hatred towards animals that are necessary to keep the balance in the forest lands and national parks. They kill the wolves for sport, something that is socially acceptable. Other corrupt, more wealthy people pay for the hides or pay large amount of money to go on "wolf hunts".

# Posted By Jessie Matheny | 6/24/13 9:46 PM
Aaron's Gravatar our countries government has approved the ability to shoot and kill the animals without being punished by taking them off the Endangered Species List. Will we as humans with a population of almost 7 billion, think we have the right to kill a species to already almost at extinction? This, when we were responsible for killing them and bringing their numbers down in the first place just over 100 years ago.When I was a child growing up in Montana, the wolves reached a dangerously low population. I was proud when the local Fish and Wildlife Admin stepped in and made protected areas for the wolves while they bred, and brought in wolves from other areas to ensure their thriving numbers. This was the ethical right decision.The most famous of all the Wolves in Yellowstone National park has even been recently killed. She was the Alpha Female of the famous Lamar Canyon wolf pack. Her pack now being without a strong female alpha will have trouble defending themselves without her strength.

# Posted By Aaron | 6/24/13 9:48 PM
Ayenjay's Gravatar Join 12,000 people and sign the petition against taking wolves off of the endangered species list.

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/relist-wolves

# Posted By Ayenjay | 6/24/13 10:04 PM
S. Forsman's Gravatar The people of the USA nearly destroyed the native wolf population in the past. NOW, thanks to your proposal, they have yet another chance to do so. PLEASE do NOT remove the wolf from the endangered species list. Ranchers don't need to shoot on sight anything which COULD endanger their livestock. They NEED TO TAKE BETTER CARE OF their livestock! i.e. place humans next to the cattle. OR take their chances with nature.

# Posted By S. Forsman | 7/9/13 11:45 AM
's Gravatar I am writing to request that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service hold public hearings regarding the proposal to remove federal protections for gray wolves across much of the lower 48 states and that the current public comment period for the wolf-delisting proposal be extended by 30 days. This is of national significance: it will influence the recovery of an iconic native species that once ranged widely across the US. If enacted, the rule would remove federal protections for wolves in states they once inhabited and where suitable wolf habitat still exists without any attempt at federal recovery planning for wolves there. The proposal will also result in addressing habitat for the Mexican gray wolf subspecies in the Southwest. I recommend that hearings be held in the following five cities: Portland, Ore.; Sacramento, Calif.; Denver, Colo.; Tucson, Ariz. and Portland, Maine.

# Posted By | 7/9/13 3:17 PM
Dorianne Rena Dantowitz's Gravatar As a follow-up to my previous comment (which I forgot to add my name to): I recommend that hearings be held in the following five cities: Portland, Ore.; Sacramento, Calif.; Denver, Colo.; Tucson, Ariz. and Portland, Maine because they are located in a region where scientists have identified thousands of acres of habitat that is suitable for wolves. The Fish and Wildlife Service is aware of the studies documenting this habitat. Wolves could be restored to these regions only through continued federal protections for wolves and the development of federal recovery programs. The public cares deeply about wolves and their conservation. They are an important part of our national heritage and play a key role as apex predator. Federal recovery efforts to date have been widely publicized, and state management of wolves where federal protections have already been lifted has been extremely controversial. It is essential that there be adequate opportunity for public input.

# Posted By Dorianne Rena Dantowitz | 7/9/13 3:22 PM
Dorianne Dantowitz's Gravatar Please don't take any wolves off the endangered species list. If you delist wolves, your success would effectively be nothing more than "breeding" wolves for hunters who can then hunt them to extinction again. Then you can relist them and breed them back only to let them be hunted to extinction again. How sad.

# Posted By Dorianne Dantowitz | 7/9/13 3:32 PM
Bev's Gravatar Don't you find it very interesting that nobody is writing to applaud the Fish & Wildlife Division's deeply flawed decision to de-list wolves? Does that tell you something? Maybe that the American people don't want wolves delisted? I also guess that means that you will go right ahead with this wrong-headed decision since a government of the people seems to have disappeared from the face of the earth.

# Posted By Bev | 7/10/13 5:21 PM
Linda's Gravatar I,too, believe this is a travesty. We have not learned from the past. Hunters are lined up, and it is only a matter of time before the numbers decline again. These predators are still necessary for nature's balance. When will we learn? Shame on those responsible for delisting this species.

# Posted By Linda | 7/11/13 9:58 AM
Concerned American Citizen's Gravatar Unless people are educated on the importance and true nature of the wolf, removing protections from it is a ridiculous notion. With the reputation that the wolf has, it has little hope of further recovery without the protections of the federal government. Removing protections in states such as Wyoming has resulted in hundreds of wolves being killed and wolf populations are actually decreasing rather than increasing and strangely, livestock kills have actually increased as well. Experienced adult wolves being killed, leaving pups without parents and adolescent wolves without teachers. Because of the lack of guidance, younger wolves are more likely turn to taking livestock instead of hunting, which is furthering their bad reputation and spurring even more wolf killing.

# Posted By Concerned American Citizen | 7/25/13 6:00 PM
Martha Hall's Gravatar In my state, Washington, wolves are returning but far from established. Yet our local F & W has already killed one entire pack which violated our state wolf recovery plan. Don't count on the states.

# Posted By Martha Hall | 7/28/13 11:57 PM
Matt Mezinze's Gravatar I think training wolves to avoid livestock by using a shock collar on wolves, that is activated by another collar on livestock, or in the area of livestock, like an invisible fence used to train dogs to not roam out of an area, would be an easy fix to some of these problems. GPS tracking would also add volumes to the research of the needed size of territories for a sustainable population.

# Posted By Matt Mezinze | 7/29/13 12:47 PM
Justin Patterson's Gravatar Why did we release gray wolves if we are going to turn around and kill them all? I understand why ranchers dislike wolves. But research shows that the cattle deaths have been way below what scientist have estimated. And that whole elk thing is ridiculous, mountain lions and bears (bears mainly take calves) take more elk then wolves anyway. God put wolves in the Rockies for a reason. They are a keystone species. They help out other wildlife like beavers and moose. If you can wolves out of the Rockies you take the wildness right out of them as well. In yellowstone national park wolf watching has dramatically increase the local economy because of wolves. People want to see wolves, they are willing to spend money to watch them! Keep wolves free and protected!

# Posted By Justin Patterson | 7/29/13 6:43 PM
Wildlife Supporter's Gravatar As evidenced by the comments above the wolf reintroduction was an abysmal failure. I understand Bangs and Rappaport and Babbitt left the issue for you to deal with while taking pot shots from the peanut gallery, but that is the nature of wolf reintroduction. There is a certain amount of public education that was missing from the very beginning, and until that most vital component is fulfilled the job of FWS is not complete. I read your statement with care, and I’m positive you understand the issue in all it’s complexity. To complete the job somehow that segment of the public such as has responded in comments here, needs to arrive at an understanding of the issue too.

# Posted By Wildlife Supporter | 7/30/13 9:47 AM
Jim Ganyon's Gravatar Gray wolves are still endangered and ned to be protected. I think the F&W Service is making a big mistake handing it over to the states. They want to get rid of them.

# Posted By Jim Ganyon | 7/30/13 3:20 PM
Sam Booher's Gravatar Over the years I have twice visited Yellowstone. First time there a large number of Bison. Second time there were a lot less. I asked where they had gone. I found out that Montana was killing all that left the Park to the North looking for winter food in our National Forests (inside Montana). USDA and DOI need to talk.

Also , I was shown how the wolves kept the bison, moose and elk moving and not allowing them to stay and eat all the willow and other vegetation on the stream banks. This resulted in natural streams with returning otters, beaver, fish and other aquation life that before the return of wolves had long ago left Yellowstone.It is obvious to myself and other Naturalists that wolves are a top predator that are needed on all Public Lands. I am intersted in knowing what US Fish and Wildlife is doing to ensure all National Public land retain Wolves or Mountain Lions as top predators? For without a top predator America's public lands and no more than cattle ranches.

# Posted By Sam Booher | 8/13/13 9:45 PM
Michael Klein's Gravatar When deciding whether or not to delist a species as an endangered species, does the Fish and Wildlife Service use mathematical modeling?

# Posted By Michael Klein | 8/26/13 6:32 PM
Dennis Pluth's Gravatar I wonder if any of these pro wolf supporters have ever had to make their living off the land and then to have a cash asset like a calf or lamb eaten by a hungry pack. When one of them or their peers are attacked, it may change their concrete jungle attitude.

# Posted By Dennis Pluth | 8/27/13 2:50 PM
Michael Klein's Gravatar When deciding policy on managing the gray wolf, does the Fish and Wildlife Service rely on mathematical modeling of wolf populations? If yes, where would some of those models be described?

# Posted By Michael Klein | 8/27/13 6:39 PM
Michael Klein's Gravatar Response to Dennis Pluth: Of course wolf attacks on humans are unacceptable, but they are rare, usually by those few wolves that are rabid or are habituated to humans. And of course we want to minimize wolf predation on livestock. Question is, can we do so without minimizing wolf populations? Wyoming is trying to keep wolves and livestock separate by protecting wolves in the wild northwest part of the state while allowing any wolf to be killed anywhere else in the state. It remains to be seen if this approach is successful. Another way is to make sure that there is enough wolf habitat stocked with enough wild game so that wolves do not feel the need to wander into human territory. There should be enough room in this world for both humans and wildlife, and a good wildlife environment needs a top predator like the wolf.

# Posted By Michael Klein | 8/28/13 11:14 PM
Rick Meier's Gravatar The gray wolf is nothing but a political pawn played by both sides and pimped by a shill of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Sevice that tries to act legit .....shameful

# Posted By Rick Meier | 9/2/13 2:27 AM
Randy Comeleo's Gravatar No public hearing in the Pacific Northwest? Those of us in Oregon and Washington have a completely different view of the proposed delisting than people in the states where hearings are currently scheduled.

# Posted By Randy Comeleo | 9/5/13 3:05 PM
Cristy Murray's Gravatar What are you in such a freaking big rush to delist wolves? As a member of both the Center for Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife, I tend to let them speak for me because they are much better at remaining polite. It isn't polite to destroy something that took decades to restore. With programs in place to compensate for predation I don't understand the blood lust against wolves.

# Posted By Cristy Murray | 9/5/13 3:10 PM
Dennis Pluth's Gravatar In the past few years the elk herd in Yellowstone has been nearly wiped out by the wolves. Only elk left are those living close by the inhabited areas. Let's face it the wolf population is growing way too fast.
They need control.

# Posted By Dennis Pluth | 9/5/13 3:56 PM
Mtn Mamma's Gravatar Could you please have a Public Comment Hearing in Colorado? Many people in this state would like to have their voice heard on this issue. Wolves need continued Federal protection in suitable habitat/historic range where they have not yet reestablished populations. Colorado could have wolves migrating in from both the North and South.

# Posted By Mtn Mamma | 9/5/13 8:48 PM
's Gravatar I live in Colorado and would love to see wolves reestablish a healthy population here. Colorado has excellent wolf habitat and is part of the Gray Wolves historical range. We could see Grays disperse from the North or Mexican Grays disperse from the South. I have closely followed the saga of wolf recovery in both science and political realms. I do feel that the USFWS's delisting proposal is premature. I would like the opportunity to voice my opinion on the matter. Would you please consider hosting an additional Public Hearing in Colorado?

# Posted By | 9/6/13 10:29 AM
Gordon Holm's Gravatar To put the survival of the Gray Wolf back in the hands of the very people that led to their total eradication in the 1980's is beyond recklessness.The past 40 years the Fish and Wildlife Service has spent countless time and effort in the reintroduction of the species.This regulation would once again give control to the hunting and ranching interests who are not and will never be in favor of the wolf's survival in the lower 48 states. In good conscience no other decision can be made but to keep the Gray Wolf under Federal protection.

# Posted By Gordon Holm | 9/10/13 1:32 PM
Shirley Smith's Gravatar Our iconic wolves are an integral part of wilderness ecosystems. They are magnificent, iconic animals and will, once again, be put in harms way by ranchers and thrill-of-the-kill hunters who want to see them "exterminated!" There is no truth or logic in their supposed "recovery" and handing their lives over to individual states is surely signing their death warrant! Where is compassion and respect for life when these decisions are made?

# Posted By Shirley Smith | 9/10/13 8:38 PM


http://www.fws.gov/director/dan-ashe/index.cfm/2013/6/7/Gray-wolves-are-recovered-next-up-the-Mexican-wolf#more