Wyoming still will wait to control wolves
Before states can kill wolves under the new rule, however, they would need to obtain public comment
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHEYENNE, Wyo. The announcement of a federal-state compromise that would allow Wyoming to assume control over wolves in the state doesnt mean that the transfer will happen any time soon.
There are a number of hurdles that have to be dealt with, said Mitch King, director for the Mountain-Prairie Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
A public planning process like those used by Montana and Idaho to develop state wolf-management plans is expected to take several months.
In the meantime, concessions made by both sides in opening the way for Wyoming to have a federally accepted wolf-management plan could open new avenues for litigation.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is requiring Montana, Idaho and Wyoming to have acceptable wolf management plans before the regions wolves are removed from Endangered Species Act protection. The federal government accepted plans submitted by Montana and Idaho but rejected Wyomings plan, prompting the state to file suit.
One of Wyomings requirements in its recent agreement with the Fish and Wildlife Service is a rule allowing states to kill wolves that are seen as taking a heavy toll on wildlife.
The proposed rule, expected out within weeks, would allow states to reduce wolf numbers based on good, solid, scientifically based evidence that wolves are causing damage to wildlife, King said.
It all zeros back to basing your decision on good science and not just anecdotal observation, he said.
Before states can kill wolves under the new rule, however, they would need to obtain public comment, federal permission and peer review of their scientific conclusions.
In addition, each state would be required to maintain a total statewide wolf population of 20 breeding pairs. A breeding pair is defined as an adult male and female raising two or more of that years pups until Dec. 31.
That would be twice as many breeding pairs as were required under the original reintroduction guidelines, and five more wolves than states already have agreed to sustain under their management plans.
Wyoming Game and Fish Department Director Terry Cleveland said he finds the requirement to maintain 20 breeding pairs a little perplexing but workable.
He said that once federal reintroduction guidelines are met, states should be allowed to decide the total number of additional wolves roaming inside their borders.
The Fish and Wildlife Service could publish in early 2008 its formal intent to remove wolves in the northern Rockies from the list of endangered species. That could trigger months or years of litigation by environmental groups before states gain full control over wolf management.