After decades of work by states, tribes, conservation groups and the federal government to reverse the decline toward extinction of the gray wolf, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined the species in the western Great Lakes region is recovered, and the agency has removed gray wolves in this region from protection under the federal Endangered Species Act.
The final rule delisting gray wolves in the Western Great Lakes area appears in today's Federal Register and becomes effective on March 12, 2007.
? Wolves are back in this part of the country because a broad spectrum of people approached the task of recovery as a common goal, and every partner played a part in achieving this success," said Robyn Thorson, the Service's Midwest Regional Director. "The states of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, members of tribes, a number of conservation organizations, and the citizens of these states are to be commended -- all are authors of this historic conservation success story.?
Thorson pointed to a variety of efforts that led to recovery of the wolf in the western Great Lakes, including protection under the Endangered Species Act and increased public knowledge of the gray wolf and its role in the ecosystem.
In addition to efforts by the states and tribes, several national conservation organizations like the National Wildlife Federation and Defenders of Wildlife have played crucial roles in the Services wolf recovery programs. Equally important are a number of Midwest organizations devoted entirely, or primarily, to wolf conservation, including the International Wolf Center and the Wildlife Science Center in Minnesota, and the Timber Wolf Alliance and Timber Wolf Information Network in Wisconsin.
? The removal of these wolves from the endangered species list ends federal direction of the recovery effort," said Thorson. "With robust wolf populations and sound management plans in place in the three states, the effort to save the gray wolf from extinction enters a new phase, with states and tribes assuming lead responsibility for the future of the species. We have turned the corner and moved beyond wolf recovery to the new challenge of long-term wolf management.?
Until the rule becomes effective on March 12, gray wolves remain federally classified and protected as endangered, except in Minnesota where they are threatened. The Service's removal of the gray wolf from the endangered and threatened species list applies to the Western Great Lakes Distinct Population Segment. This area includes the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. The DPS includes all the areas currently occupied by wolf packs in Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin, as well as nearby areas in these states in which wolf packs may become established in the future. The DPS also includes surrounding areas into which wolves may disperse but are not likely to establish packs.
Rebounding from a few hundred wolves in Minnesota in the 1970s when listed as endangered, the region's gray wolf population now numbers about 4,000 and occupies large portions of Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. Wolf numbers in the three states have exceeded the numerical recovery criteria established in the species? Recovery Plan for several years. In Minnesota, the population is estimated at 3,020. The estimated wolf population in Wisconsin is 465, and about 434 wolves are believed to inhabit Michigan's Upper Peninsula, with an additional 30 wolves on Isle Royale.
The Recovery Plan for the Eastern Timber Wolf established criteria to identify the point at which wolves would no longer be threatened with extinction in the eastern United States. To achieve this recovery, the plan called for maintaining and expanding the Minnesota wolf population and establishing at least one other gray wolf population in the Eastern U.S. The second population could be totally isolated from the Minnesota wolf population, or it could be adjacent to it, as is the case with the Wisconsin-Michigan population that has developed during the last three decades. The Wisconsin-Michigan wolf population resulted from the natural movements of Minnesota wolves into these states, and to a lesser extent, from Canadian wolves moving into the eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
The final rule removing the Western Great Lakes gray wolf from the endangered and threatened species list culminates a process during which the Service published a proposed rule to delist, gathered public input during a 90-day comment period and a series of public hearings, conducted a peer review of the proposal, and analyzed comments and new information.
The Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin Departments of Natural Resources have developed plans to guide wolf management actions in the future. The Service reviewed these plans and found they established a sufficient basis for long-term wolf management. Issues such as protective regulations, control of problem animals, possible hunting and trapping seasons, as well as long-term health of the wolf population, will be governed by the appropriate state or tribe.
The Service will monitor wolf populations in the Western Great Lakes DPS for a minimum of five years to ensure that delisting was not done prematurely. A post-delisting monitoring plan is being developed, focusing on three areas: gray wolf populations, threats to the species, and mechanisms in place to reduce threats. Monitoring primarily would be conducted in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan'the core wolf recovery area. At the end of the monitoring period, the Service will decide if relisting, continued monitoring, or ending Service monitoring is appropriate. If warranted (for example, data show a significant decline or increased threats), the Service will consider continuing monitoring beyond the specified time.
The rule and other information about the gray wolf may be found at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/wolf
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
