Dear Dianne,
After decades of efforts to restore gray wolves to the lands they once roamed, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming are giving hunters and trappers free reign to kill wolves and to do so using barbaric practices. More than 500 gray wolves have been killed in these states in recent months. [1]
In light of these anti-wolf laws, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is currently reviewing the status of gray wolves in western states. Last week, a federal judge restored protections for most gray wolves. However, wolves in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming were delisted prior to 2020 and are not included in the successful lawsuit that restored protections for wolves across the rest of the country. Now is the time to take action, as the USFWS could make a decision on restoring protections for northern Rockies gray wolves any day now.
Tell USFWS Acting Director Martha Williams to reinstate endangered species protections for gray wolves in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.
For years, Tribal Nations have led the charge to protect gray wolves. These Nations continue to do so with "The Wolf: A Treaty of Cultural and Environmental Survival" -- a blueprint for wolf management and the restoration of the species. Over 700 Tribal Nations on both sides of the U.S. and Canadian border -- all sharing a strong cultural connection to the wolf -- have signed on to demand wolves be protected and that Tribal Nations play a pivotal role in deciding how wolves are managed. [2]
Tom Rodgers, President of the Global Indigenous Council recently said, "For Indigenous people, the [Endangered Species Act] wolf delisting, and the now ongoing decimation of the wolf by white trophy hunters, trappers, and bounty hunters, isn't simply an 'environmental' or 'wildlife' issue, it is a social justice issue."
Show your support and tell the USFWS that Tribal Nations must play a central role in deciding how to protect the gray wolf.
Dismantling protections for gray wolves has been swift. Last year, Montana and Idaho legislatures passed laws with the intention to wipe out 85% to 90% of the wolves in these states. In Montana, gray wolves can be baited, strangled by neck snares, and shot at night using artificial light or night vision scopes. In Idaho, people are allowed to bait, snare, and use snow mobiles and all-terrain vehicles to chase wolves until they are too exhausted to run.
Even the wolves that live in Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks are at risk if they leave their protected area and explore land adjacent to the parks. Already, 24 Yellowstone wolves -- approximately 30% of the Park's entire wolf population -- have been killed since September after crossing the park border.[3]
Tell Acting Director Williams to act quickly and restore endangered species protections for the northern Rocky Mountain gray wolves immediately.
Thank you for all you do,
Bonnie Rice
Senior Representative, Endangered Species
Sierra Club
Photo by NPS/Jacob W. Frank
Sources
[1] Virginia Morell, "Massive wolf kill disrupts long-running study of Yellowstone Park packs," Science, January 31, 2022.
[2] The Wolf Treaty: A Treaty of Cultural and Environmental Survival
[3] Margaret Osborne and Rachael Lallensack, "Hunters Have Killed 24 Yellowstone Gray Wolves So Far This Season--the Most in Over 25 Years,"Smithsonian Magazine, February 9, 2022.
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