Gray Wolf May Lose 40 Years of Federally Protected Status

A proposal by the Obama administration would lift 40 years of federally protected status from gray wolves in the contiguous United States, drawing consternation from some animal conservationists, who say the wolves need to remain federally protected, despite a documented population rebound.

The announcement equates to a consensus among government scientists that the gray wolf no longer needs the protection afforded by the Endangered Species Act.  

"Science is an important part of this decision, but really the key is the policy question of when is a species recovered," U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe said to the Associated Press. "Does the wolf have to occupy all the habitat that is available to it in order for it to be recovered? Our answer to that question is no."

Historically the gray wolf's home range stretched across most of North America. But by the mid-20th century only a few hundred gray wolves remained in the lower 48 states, their populations decimated by years of poisoning and trapping by ranchers, farmers and government agents, according to the National Wildlife Federation.

Grey wolf populations now exceed 6,100 across a swath of 10 states across the Northern Rockies and western Great Lakes.

But some conservationists believe the wolves should continue to enjoy federal protection to allow the species to expand their current range to greater extents.  

Carlos Carroll of California's Klamath Center for Conservation Research told the AP that wildlife officials were bowing to political pressure to place limits on the wolf's range

"They've tried to devise their political position first, and then cherry-pick their science to support it," Carroll said, referring to the Fish and Wildlife Service.

A fledgling population of Mexican gray wolves would retain their federally protected status, while the larger population of gray wolves would lose their current protection from hunting, trapping, trading and human encroachment upon their habitat.

The National Wildlife Federation considers the gray wolf an endangered species success story, citing the Endangered Species Act as the reason for wolves' population rebound.  

Delisting the gray wolf is subject to a 90-day public comment period and will be finalized within a year, the Los Angeles Times reported.

It's not the first time in recent months a group has suggested removing an animal's engendered status. In May, a group of Hawaiian fishermen called for the delisting of the Pacific humpback whale as an endangered species, citing a rebounded population.

"You cannot add species after species after species without evaluating whether there are species that should come off," the group's leader said.  

RELATED: Hawaii Fishermen's Group Wants Humpback Whale Off The Endangered Species List