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Programs and Policy

Northern Rockies Wolves

Defenders' Experts

Media Contacts

Please direct media inquiries to:

James Navarro

Northern Rockies and Yellowstone Area Wolf Management and Policy

Legal Action for Wolves

Defenders of Wildlife and 12 other conservation groups filed a lawsuit asking the courts to reverse the ill-timed and unwarranted removal of Endangered Species Act protections for wolves in the Northern Rockies.
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Stay up to date by reading our blog, My Yellowstone Wolves.

More than 30 years of protection under the Endangered Species Act has allowed wolves to regain their natural place in Greater Yellowstone and the northern Rockies. But that recovery is now at risk.

Wolves were reintroduced to central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park in 1995 under the federal Endangered Species Act. The ESA requires that federal protection can only be removed once all factors guarantee the wolf population will be sustained by state regulations and plans.

In 2007, the Bush administration removed federal protection despite the inadequacy of state regulations and many wolves were shot on sight just because they were no longer protected.

On April 28, 2008 Defenders and 11 other conservation groups filed a federal court lawsuit challenging the federal government’s February decision to remove the northern Rockies gray wolf population from the list of endangered species. As of March 28, 2008, this left wolf management in the hands of state agencies.

On July 18, 2008, the U.S. District Court in Missoula granted our request for a preliminary injunction, temporarily placing n orthern Rockies wolves back under federal protection and preventing the hunts from going forward, but not before all the known wolves in southwestern Wyoming had been lost. These animals and their pups had already been killed. Unfortunately, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming have stated their intention to kill many of the wolves living within their borders. The states' management plans could put wolves at grave risk, and do not guarantee the long-term survival of the species.

Defenders opposed the proposal to remove federal protections for the Northern Rockies wolf population and so did important members of Congress and wildlife organization across the region and nationally. Unfortunately, Obama Administration Interior Secretary Salazar didn't discuss his plans with wildlife supporters but instead on March 6, 2009 announced his decision to approve the wolf delisting plan.

This plan allows more than 1,000 wolves from the population of 1,500 to be killed. We're concerned that if the states kill so many wolves, it will fragment the population and threaten the survival of wolves in the region. If the current plan isn't stopped, hunting seasons could begin as early as this fall in Idaho and Montana -- and Idaho Governor “Butch” Otter has again said that he wants the first available hunting tag to shoot a wolf.

Defenders wants the states to manage wolves but only under reasonable plans that provide a secure future for wolves in the northern Rockies. This plan is too extreme and allows states like Idaho, that have a long history of wolf animosity, to manage the species to critically low numbers.

Defenders is challenging this plan and will do everything possible to stop it.

How You Can Help

If you're a resident of the northern Rockies or Pacific Northwest and support having a healthy wolf population in the region, please contact Suzanne Asha Stone at suzanne.stone@defenders.org or by telephone at (208) 424-9385 for more information about how you can help.

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Petition to FWS for National Recovery Plan for Wolves

Defenders of Wildlife joined with the Natural Resources Defense Council in petitioning the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a national recovery plan for wolves in the Unites States, with regional recovery goals aimed at supporting sustainable populations of wolves in the northern Rockies, the northeast and the southwest.

Idaho Wolf Management and Policy

On May 22, 2008, Idaho's Fish and Game Commission adopted a regulated wolf hunt that will allow up to 428 of Idaho's 700+ wolves to be removed. Idaho's governor has publicly announced his intention to kill more than 80% of the state's wolves, which would leave just over 100 wolves in Idaho. That's too extreme. It's time for Idaho to manage wolves in a responsible and sustainable manner. But this time, we need a process that brings together a balance of stakeholders to craft wolf and livestock management plans based on solid science. For those who share a deep respect for our natural resources, we can work together to make this a reality. We have another chance to get it right this time.

Wyoming Wolf Management and Policy

Wyoming's wolf management plan would allow 16 of the existing 23 packs of the wolves in the state to be killed on sight. To accomplish this goal, the state would authorize poisoning, trapping and shooting within 90% of the wolf's current home range outside of the national parks.

Learn more at:

Wyoming Wolves

Wyoming Wolf Management Plan

Defenders of Wildlife’s Comments on the Wyoming Wolf Management Plan