The future of wolves in Minnesota will be assured under the Wolf Management Plan presented today by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The Plan will be authorized and implemented through legislation that will be introduced in the near future. The legislation is necessary to demonstrate to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and all people interested in wolves the clear intention of the State of Minnesota to sustain a healthy wolf population in Minnesota and to address conflicts between wolves and humans.

During the next year, the USFWS will consider delisting the gray wolf in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan from the Endangered Species Act of 1973. This would return management of Minnesota's wolf population to the state. But in order to make that decision, the USFWS must determine that the long-term survival of the wolf is assured. The DNR has developed the Management Plan through a legislatively funded (Legislative Commission on Minnesota's Resources) public planning process to provide that assurance. A wolf management plan is required by the USFWS before a final decision on the status of the wolf is reached. Legislative approval is required to implement the plan in Minnesota.

The public planning process began in January 1998 with a series of 12 public information meetings attended by over 3,000 people around the state. The DNR then convened a Wolf Management Roundtable, which included representatives of all areas and all interests concerned with the future of wolves in Minnesota - land-owners, agricultural interests, Native Americans, animal protection advocates, and other Minnesota citizens (see attached list). The Roundtable took on the most difficult issues regarding wolf management, and through a consensus building process was able to reach agreement on a series of recommendations to the DNR and the Legislature in developing the Wolf Management Plan. DNR staff took the recommendations from the Roundtable and developed the Plan based on those recommendations.

"The process of building consensus on recommendations for wolf management was inclusive and thorough," said DNR Commissioner Al Garber. "After reviewing the work done by DNR staff, and especially the Wolf Roundtable in the past year, I am assured that the major concerns of wolf management have been addressed and that a process has been established to make sure concerns continue to be addressed in the future. In addition, the wolf population numbers are based on sound science that has been scrutinized and approved by outside reviewers."

When management reverts to the state, the plan will be implemented in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Wildlife Services, and other tribal and government agencies.

Key Elements of the Wolf Management Plan

• The USFWS will monitor Minnesota's wolf population for five years after delisting to ensure that wolf recovery does not relapse. During this initial five-year period, Minnesota's wolf population will not be controlled, and a minimum population goal of 1,600 wolves will be in place. Consideration of hunting and trapping of wolves by the DNR will be deferred during this five-year period.
• The plan will permit anyone to kill a wolf in defense of human life. The plan allows livestock and dog owners to kill wolves that pose an immediate threat to their animals, under certain conditions. In addition, harassment of wolves is allowed to discourage interaction between wolves and humans, livestock or pets.
• The plan commits the State to the most aggressive population monitoring program in the country, including a full-scale population survey in five years and annual monitoring of population trends.
• The DNR will be the primary enforcement agency for wolves. DNR enforcement officers will investigate all wolf killings. Any illegal wolf taking will be prosecuted as a gross misdemeanor resulting in maximum fines of $3,000 and up to one year in jail. In addition, restitution for wolves killed will be $2,000 per wolf.
• Education efforts about wolves and wolf management will be conducted in partnership with existing private programs.
• Although there is more scientific data on wolves than on any other carnivore, additional research is desirable. The DNR will continue to support and encourage research programs, especially those focused on improving population monitoring and non-lethal control of wolf populations.

1998 Wolf Survey

The Minnesota DNR is in the process of finalizing results of the 1997-98 wolf population survey. The survey was coordinated by the DNR Section of Wildlife with cooperation from other DNR divisions, and essentially all federal, county and Indian natural resource agencies statewide. This is the third comprehensive wolf population survey conducted by the DNR. Results of this survey, as in the past, have been subject to review and scrutiny by the nation's leading wolf biologists.

The 1997-98 population survey estimates the current Minnesota wolf population to be 2,445. The survey also found that most areas considered potential wolf range in Minnesota are occupied by wolves. As a result, wolf numbers are expected to increase at a lower rate in the future. The next survey is planned for 2002-2003.

The bill, to be introduced in the legislature, creates and modifies statutes that requires the DNR to create a Wolf Management Plan and authorizes key elements of the plan:

• allows wolves to be killed in defense of human life
• allows harassment of wolves to discourage contact with people and livestock
• authorizes livestock and dog owners to kill wolves posing an immediate threat
• clarifies that the public taking of wolves by hunting or trapping is not authorized
• establishes penalties and restitution for illegal wolf killing.

The bill recognizes that federal authority supersedes state law until the wolf is delisted from the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

An additional bill to be introduced in 2000 will provide funding for depredation compensation, staff and research.

"We know no management plan can be perfect," said Commissioner Garber. "But, like any plan that is developed by consensus, it is something that everyone can live with. Some people will want to provide more protection for livestock and other animals. Others will want to provide more protection for wolves. Through the roundtable process we have worked to find the delicate balance between those views and present something that all Minnesotans can live with. I look forward to working with the legislature on this issue."