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Doug Honnold, the managing attorney of EarthJustice, writes that a sad milestone has passed: "More than 100 [gray] wolves have been killed since Idaho and Montana began hunting them this fall." Following President Obama and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar's decision to remove gray wolves from the endangered species list in parts of the Midwest, Montana, and Idaho, governors in the later states approved plans to allow wolf hunts to take place this fall. So far, the casualties have been severe.
Among the wolves that have already been killed were key members of the Cottonwood Creek pack, one of the most important research groups in the western United States. The loss, one researcher said, illustrates one of the pressing concerns related to the wolf hunts: the protection of roaming packs.
Doug Smith, the biologist in charge of the Yellowstone reintroduction program, explained that there are:
Quite a number of other border packs. So people need to decide how hunting's going to occur on the park boundaries...Whose wolves are they? Are they national wolves? Montana wolves? And we have to decide what is the value of our research on wolf populations that are not affected by people.
This issue, of course, is a direct result of the delisting of the gray wolf.
A Preserved Legacy
Among the many motions former-President George W. Bush tried to push through in his last days in office was the removal of gray wolves from the endangered species list. This movement was initially paused for consideration by Barack Obama but, in the end, was allowed to slip through.
This decision, environmental groups like EarthFirst contend, is a violation of the Endangered Species Act.
Wolves, of course, have not reached the levels scientists deem necessary to maintain a sustainable population. Conservationists believe that a population of at least 2,000 in the region, a number not yet attained by gray wolves, would be necessary before hunting could safely take place.
Take Action to Help Wolves
You can help protect wolves in the western United States by contributing to EarthFirst's legal fund. The organization points out that legal action has protected the wolves against such attacks in the past, and with proper support, legal action can protect them once again.
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Invasive Species: When Small Creatures Do Big Damage
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Where the Wild Things Are (Not)
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