Protection lifted from some gray wolves

May 05, 2011|Associated Press

BILLINGS, Mont. — The Obama administration announced yesterday that it is lifting endangered species act protection for 5,500 gray wolves in eight states in the Northern Rockies and Great Lakes.

The move essentially draws the line on the predators’ rapid expansion over the past two decades. Public hunts for hundreds of wolves already are planned this fall in Idaho and Montana, and Interior Department officials said yesterday that the most suitable wolf habitat is already occupied.

Conservationists have hailed the wolves’ recovery from near-extinction as a landmark achievement that should be extended to the Pacific Northwest and New England.

But the federal wolf program has stirred a backlash from agriculture and sporting groups angry over wolf attacks on livestock and big game herds.

“To be sure, not everyone will be satisfied with today’s announcement,’’ said Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. “Wolves have long been a highly charged issue.’’

Western lawmakers attached a rider to the federal budget bill mandating the move for 1,300 wolves in the Northern Rockies. The rider blocked legal challenges and marked the first time Congress has stripped a species of protections. Protections for those wolves are to be lifted effective with a notice today in the Federal Register.

About 4,200 wolves listed as threatened in the western Great Lakes are also slated to lose protections.