Grey Wolf Taken Off Endangered ListThe grey wolf was Monday taken off the U.S. list of endangered species,
making a comeback 35 years after it virtually disappeared and can now be
hunted in most states, officials said. The grey wolf was placed on the endangered list in 1974 after the animals
were almost eliminated in many U.S. states. In all these states grey wolves can now be hunted again according to strict regulations. But in northwestern Wyoming, where there are still only around 300 animals, the grey wolf remains a protected species. "The states will be able to use regulated hunting to manage wolf populations," said Bangs, adding that "the hunting season will occur this fall, people will be able to buy a license to hunt a wolf." He said some 265 wolves had been killed last year in the northern Rockies "because of cattle problems but the population still grew eight percent." "The hunting won't affect the wolf population, but instead of having a person like me getting on a helicopter and shoot a wolf after it killed someone's cow, you'll have a hunter with a license to go out in the fall and hunt a wolf with a fair chase," Bangs added. And he offered reassurances that conservationists would be keeping an eye on the nation's grey wolf population over the next five years. "If the states don't do a good job over five years, we put them back on the endangered species list," he vowed. Copyright © 2009 Discovery Communications, LLC. To subscribe or visit go to: http://dsc.discovery.com |