Current:Home > FinanceGroups sue to restore endangered species protection for US northern Rockies wolves-InfoLens
Groups sue to restore endangered species protection for US northern Rockies wolves
View Date:2024-12-23 10:32:35
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Six conservation groups have filed a lawsuit challenging a recent federal government decision not to protect wolves in the northern U.S. Rocky Mountain region under the Endangered Species Act, arguing that states are exercising too much leeway to keep the predators’ numbers to a minimum.
The groups sued the U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the directors of those agencies July 2 in U.S. District Court in Missoula, Montana.
The lawsuit follows a Fish and Wildlife Service decision in February to reject conservationists’ requests to restore endangered species protections across the region. Wolves are in no danger of extinction as states seek to reduce their numbers through hunting, the agency found.
The Fish and Wildlife Service at the same time announced it would write a first-ever national recovery plan for wolves, with a target completion date of December 2025. Previously, the Fish and Wildlife Service pursued a region-by-region approach to wolf management.
The decision not to return wolves to endangered status in the region violated the Endangered Species Act by failing to properly analyze threats to wolves and rely on the best available science involving the animals, the six groups wrote in their lawsuit.
The lawsuit critiques state wolf management programs in the region. Montana and Idaho plan to sharply reduce wolf numbers while Wyoming allows wolves outside a designated sport hunting zone to be killed by a variety of means, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit singled out how a Wyoming man last winter ran down a wolf with a snowmobile, taped its mouth shut and brought it into a bar before killing it. The killing drew wide condemnation but only a $250 state fine for illegal possession of wildlife under Wyoming law.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit filed by Animal Wellness Action; the Center for a Humane Economy; Project Coyote, a project of the Earth Island Institute Inc.; the Kettle Range Conservation Group; Footloose Montana; and the Gallatin Wildlife Association.
“Rocky Mountain states have liberalized the legal killing of wolves and have also removed discretion from their fish and wildlife agencies, letting lawmakers run wild and unleashing ruthless campaigns to kill wolves by just about any and all means,” Kate Chupka Schultz, senior attorney for Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy, said in a statement.
Wolves have been protected as an endangered species in the region off and on since they were first delisted in 2008. They were first listed in 1974 and populations were successfully reintroduced in Yellowstone National Park and Idaho in the mid-1990s.
They have been off the federal endangered species list in the northern U.S. Rockies since 2017.
The rejection of the conservation groups’ petitions to relist wolves in February allowed state-run wolf hunts to continue in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. Wolves also roam parts of California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington.
An estimated 2,800 wolves inhabit the seven states.
veryGood! (8)
Related
- Investigators believe Wisconsin kayaker faked his own death before fleeing to eastern Europe
- In Final Rock Springs Resource Management Plan, BLM Sticks With Conservation Priorities, Renewable Energy Development
- US Open: Iga Swiatek and other tennis players say their mental and physical health are ignored
- Los Angeles authorities searching for children taken by parents during supervised visit
- Michael Jordan and driver Tyler Reddick come up short in bid for NASCAR championship
- Health insurance providers to fund street doctors and clinics to serve LA’s homeless population
- Crews work to restore power to more than 300,000 Michigan homes, businesses after storms
- Jury returns to deliberations in trial of former politician accused of killing Las Vegas reporter
- NATO’s Rutte calls for more Western support for Ukraine, warns of Russian alliances
- The Paralympic Games are starting. Here’s what to expect as 4,400 athletes compete in Paris
Ranking
- Why Suits' Gabriel Macht Needed Time Away From Harvey Specter After Finale
- Circle K offering 40 cents off gas ahead of Labor Day weekend in some states
- 80-year-old man dies after falling off boat on the Grand Canyon's Colorado River
- Reports: Veteran pitcher Rich Hill to rejoin Red Sox at age 44
- Mississippi woman pleads guilty to stealing Social Security funds
- Out-of-state law firms boost campaign cash of 2 Democratic statewide candidates in Oregon
- Reports: Veteran pitcher Rich Hill to rejoin Red Sox at age 44
- Russia bans 92 more Americans from the country, including journalists
Recommendation
-
Medical King recalls 222,000 adult bed assistance rails after one reported death
-
'Beloved' father who was clearing storm drains identified as victim of Alaska landslide
-
Stefanos Tsitsipas exits US Open: 'I'm nothing compared to the player I was before'
-
CDC reports 5 more deaths, new cases in Boar's Head listeria outbreak since early August
-
'Full House' star Dave Coulier diagnosed with stage 3 cancer
-
K-pop singer Taeil leaves boyband NCT over accusation of an unspecified sexual crime, his label says
-
Nick Cannon and Brittany Bell's Advanced Son Golden Is Starting 4th Grade at 7 Years Old
-
Memphis, Tennessee murder suspect crashes through ceiling as US Marshals search for him