Endangered Species List: Wolves De-Listed in Oregon

Wolves have been knocked off the Endangered Species List in Oregon, although the state's Department of Fish & Wildlife says that management of wolves will not change. This followed an earlier decision by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission to remove wolves from the list, according to a statement.

The state agencies will still follow Oregon's Wolf Plan's specific guidelines, which were drawn up in 2005 and updated in 2010. For instance, hunters and trappers may still not take wolves; and non-lethal preventive measures are still advocated under the Plan for farmers, ranchers and others trying to preserve their stock from wolves, as the release noted.

Also, the gray wolf remains listed on the federal Endangered Species Act west of Highways 395, 78 and 95, and they are regulated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The Oregon DFW noted in its release that deciding to delist the wolves was part of a "vote of confidence" in the state's Wolf Plan and in its continued implementation. "I believe we have wolves because of the Plan and the forbearance of eastern Oregonians in abiding by the plan. It is incumbent on everybody to continue sticking with the plan," said ODFW Commissioner Bruce Buckmaster, according to the release.

"The decision was deeply disheartening for us," Amaroq Weiss, with the advocacy organization Center for Biological Diversity, said in an article in the Eastern Oregon newspaper the Wallowa County Chieftan. "Our sense is that the step Oregon took in delisting is not representative of how most Oregonians feel about endangered species. I know the commission said they care about wolves, but I think if they cared about wolves they'd have followed science and followed the law. In this case, it's pretty clear they didn't do either."

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