Wolves Back on Endangered List - for Now

Gray wolves were removed from the federal endangered species list in 2012, but a federal judge ruled Friday the delisting was “arbitrary and capricious.” (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photo)

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Gray wolves in Michigan and two other states are once again on the endangered species list, a status that exempts them from hunting and trapping.

A federal judge on Friday threw out the Obama administration’s order removing protections for the wolves in the western Great Lakes region, which includes Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, the Detroit Free Press reports.

There are about 3,700 wolves in the three states, which have been managing wolf populations since 2012 when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service dropped the federal protections.

Environmentalists cheered the ruling from U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell in Washington, DC, who said the removal of protections two years ago was “arbitrary and capricious” an violated the Endangered Species Act.

“We filed the lawsuit to relist the Great Lakes population of wolves,” said Jill Fritz, coordinator of Michigan’s Humane Society of the United States. “It was based on the assertion that the Great Lakes states had proven they could not responsibly manage wolves when they were delisted in January 2012.”

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will confer with the Justice Department before deciding whether to appeal the ruling. Agency spokesman Gavin Shire said scientific research clearly establishes that wolf populations have recovered in the Great Lakes region, and wildlife officials in the three states have demonstrated their ability to effectively manage the populations.

“This is a significant step backward,” he said.

• Read the ruling here.