Feds reject dual status for wolves
Associated Press
GREEN RIVER, Wyo. (AP) – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has rejected
the state’s plan to seek dual classification for the gray wolf, saying it
would undermine efforts to keep the animal from becoming endangered again.
Going against the advice of department directors, Wyoming’s Game and Fish
Commission earlier this month voted to designate the wolf as a trophy game
animal in some forest wilderness areas and a predator in the rest of the
state.
That classification meant the wolf could be killed anytime, any way,
anywhere, much like the coyote, jack rabbit and skunk, if its federal
protection is removed. Animals classified as trophy game are subject to
state hunting regulations, including licensing and specific hunting
seasons.
Federal biologists criticized the plan, saying it could stall efforts to
remove the animal from the endangered species list.
Wyoming, Idaho and Montana must have state management plans in place and
approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service prior to a delisting
petition being submitted.
Wyoming’s dual classification proposal wouldn’t meet federal delisting
standards, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Steve Williams said
Thursday in a letter to the state Game and Fish Department.
“I guess we were kind of hoping he would say otherwise, but quite frankly
I’m not surprised” by the opinion, Game and Fish Acting Director Tom
Thorne said Friday.
The problem with dual classification is the state must show it has enough
legal authority to prevent the wolf from becoming endangered or threatened
again, Williams said.
The state could not regulate wolf management in areas where the animal is
classified as a predator, which would be most areas in the state, Williams
said.
“If wolves are legally managed as trophy game animals … (the department)
could quickly revise regulations of enact emergency orders, without the
need for legislative approvals,” Williams wrote.
Game and Fish commissioners planned to revisit the issue at their next
meeting in October.
Wolves were reintroduced in Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho in
1995 and 1996. As of last year, 189 wolves were living in northwest
Wyoming in 10 packs, each with a breeding pair.