USSAF Submits More Comments to FWS for Western Great Lakes Wolf Delisting
9/30/11
This week, the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation (USSAF) filed a second set of comments urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to remove wolves in the Western Great Lakes Region from the Endangered Species Act.
In proposing to delist the wolves, the FWS announced that they may recognize a new species of wolves in the region – the eastern wolf. In response to the concerns of the USSAF and others in the conservation community, the FWS’s reopened the comment period to take further public input on the issue of whether two separate wolf species should be recognized.
USSAF’s new comments provide further support that experts in the wolf field disagree with the FWS that two separate wolf species exist. The experts believe that wolves within the region are fully recovered and should be returned to state management.
Because of the importance of the issue, USSAF retained wildlife genetics expert Dr. Lisette Waits. Her declaration, attached to USSAF’s original comments, shows that FWS researchers appear to stand alone in their conclusion that there are two separate wolf species in the Region.
If the Service moves forward with the two wolves theory, it could be a major roadblock for removing them from the Endangered Species List and returning them to state management. Essentially, an incorrect two-wolf finding by the Service could give animal rights organizations ammunition to try and stop state wolf management in the courts.
“The leading independent researchers in the field agree that wolves in the Western Great Lakes Region are a single genetic group and should not be split into separate species,” said Rob Sexton, USSAF vice president of government affairs. “USSAF hopes that the Service will thoroughly review the science and back off their two-wolf theory so wolves in region can be rightfully returned to state management.”
The Western Great Lakes Region includes Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan. Wolves there remain listed under the Endangered Species Act despite the fact that populations have far exceeded recovery goals.
Groups joining the USSAF on the comments include the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, Dairyland Committee of Safari Club International Chapters of Wisconsin, Whitetails of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin Firearms Owners, Rangers, Clubs, and Educators, Inc.
