Wolf Weekly Wrap-up

Is no news good news from Montana hearing? – It looks like we’ll be waiting a while longer to learn the outcome of a settlement agreement reached between 10 conservation groups including Defenders and the Interior Department. After filing the settlement last week, the focus of wolf recovery has once again shifted to a U.S. District Court in

Misty view of a gray wolf (Canis lupus) sitting near a tree.

Missoula, Mont., where a federal judge will decide whether to accept the terms of the settlement. But at the hearing yesterday, the court made no decision, leaving many unresolved questions about the future of wolf recovery and management in the Northern Rockies. It’s likely that the court will request further briefings on the matter in coming weeks, but no timetable has been set. In the meantime, Defenders will continue the fight in Congress to oppose any attempts to strip protections for wolves and chip away at the scientific principles of the Endangered Species Act, not to mention our nation’s commitment to saving wildlife.

So far, reaction to the settlement has been mixed. Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer voiced his support immediately, as did Montana’s Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Idaho Gov. “Butch” Otter has been noticeably silent, announcing on Wednesday that he would not take an official position.

Defenders wolf expert Suzanne Stone explained why the settlement is the best way forward during an interview on Boise Public Radio:

Click here to listen

“It gets us past this logjam that wolves have been in in the region for quite some time now. There are parts of the agreement that would move science back into the equation. It allows for wolves to be delisted in just two states, in Idaho and Montana, and retaining protections for wolves that are the most vulnerable in other areas, those in Oregon, Washington, Utah, Colorado.”

“[Legislation] allows for a political process to take the place of a scientific process. These congressional bills would have done that and can still if they go forward. They could really have a detrimental effect on the Endangered Species Act that would remove the science and make it a more political process.”

Rocky Mountain Director Mike Leahy did the same on NBC-Montana: (Jump to the 30-second mark.)

“This is not a perfect solution, but I think it is a workable solution, it is a path forward,” says Defenders of Wildlife Director Michael Leahy.

“I think this opens the door for a new wave of wolf management and it provides some protections and security for wolves, but allows states to show that they can do a good job managing wolves in the meantime,” says Leahy.

Click here to learn more about the terms of the settlement. Read the response from the LA Times, New West, Outdoor Life, Idaho Press Tribune and Idaho Statesman

The Gibbon wolf pack rallies in Yellowstone National Park. Photo courtesy of U.S. National Park Service.

Wolves a boon for Yellowstone ecotourism – While the anti-wolf crowd continues to foment hysteria and exaggerate the threats that wolves pose, tour operators in and around Yellowstone National Park are telling a different story. Veteran wildlife biologists-turned entrepreneurs have been sharing their love of wolf watching with tourists for six years, and business is booming. Nathan Varley and his wife Linda Thurston met in Yellowstone in 1996 while both were interns doing research following the reintroduction of wolves the year before. Now they are leading efforts to educate visitors about wolves—everything from basic biology and pack structure to the important role they play in maintaining nature’s balance between predator and prey. Read the full story in the Missoulian.