Arizona Game and Fish Commission supports gray wolf delisting
By The Associated Press
The Arizona Game and Fish Commission has voted to support congressional action aimed at removing gray wolves from the federal endangered species list.
The commission voted 4-1 after a lengthy meeting Saturday in support of federal legislation that would declare the wolves recovered and no longer in need of federal protections.
The commission says it sees delisting the gray wolf as an opportunity to break through the gridlock that has stalled an effort to reintroduce the Mexican gray wolf, a subspecies of the gray wolf, along the Arizona-New Mexico border.
The commission says it wants to work with every stakeholder and all who are willing to negotiate and seek solutions for the troubled Mexican gray wolf program.
At last count, Arizona and New Mexico had just 42 Mexican gray wolves.