BOZEMAN, Montana — Four conservation and animal protection groups today notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services that they plan to sue over the agency's denial of their petition to protect gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains under the Endangered Species Act.
Re-listing the wolves would protect them from trappers and hunters.
“Unlike the Fish and Wildlife Service, we refuse to sanction the annual slaughter of hundreds of wolves," said Andrea Zaccardi, the Carnivore Conservation Legal Director at the Center of Biological Diversity. "Allowing unlimited wolf killing sabotages decades of recovery efforts in the northern Rockies, as well as those in neighboring West Coast and southern Rockies states.”
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Idaho laws allow gray wolves to be hunted year-round on privately owned land.
“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service failed in its commitment to advance the long-term survival of wolves in the northern Rockies — instead bowing to the demands of those who prioritize profit over wildlife,” said Gillian Lyons, director of regulatory affairs for Humane Society Legislative Fund. “Gray wolves are iconic residents of the Rocky Mountains who deserve federal protections, and we will continue this fight on behalf of the millions of Americans who value these intelligent, social creatures.”
The groups' notice to sue gives the Fish and Wildlife Service sixty days to revoke the denial of the petition. If the agency proceeds with its verdict, the groups will file a lawsuit in federal court.
