Anti-hunting groups led by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) are getting ready to challenge the federal government and sportsmen over wolves- again.
On April 2, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published the rule formally removing wolves in the Great Lakes region from the Endangered Species List in the Federal Register. The move is the last step for removing the wolves from protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and returning control of managing those populations to the states. Currently, this will become effective on May 4.
“This decision was the right one for the FWS to make. There is no valid scientific reason that states should not have the authority to manage their own wolf populations,” stated Rob Sexton, USSA vice president for government affairs.
However, there could be a wrinkle in these plans.
In an April 2 press release, the HSUS announced that it, along with a coalition of other animal rights groups, will likely challenge the FWS decision. According to the release, should the FWS not reconsider the delisting within 60 days; the coalition will ask a federal court to reinstate the ESA protection for wolves in the Great Lakes.
This effort is similar to tactics used by the HSUS and others previously when an anti-hunting coalition blocked the FWS’ effort to delist the wolves last year.
Sexton asserts, “Once again, animal rights groups are threatening to use the ESA as a weapon to shut down hunting.”
The federal government has long felt that the wolf populations in the Great Lakes region had not only recovered, but were thriving. A similar rationale was the impetus for the FWS to also delist most of the Rocky Mountain wolf population.
The USSA will be closely monitoring the progress of any legal actions taken by the anti’s and are examining possible plans of action.