Wisconsin DNR Urging Gray Wolf Off Federal Endangered Species List

In fact, the federal government is creeping towards delisting the gray wolf, based on requests from Wisconsin and two other Midwest states. The reclassification is underway, based on reports from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, part of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

The delisting would remove the gray wolf from federal endangered species classification, particularly in such states as Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota, where the feral wolf populations are recovering.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) filed a petition in April 2010, sending a request for gray wolf delisting to Ken Salazar, U.S. Secretary of the Interior. (Ken Salazar, an Obama Cabinet member, has made headlines in recent months for his role in the controversial wild horse roundups in the American West.)

Similar petitions were presented by representatives from Michigan and Minnesota. In all, the participating agencies included the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the National Rifle Association (NRA), the Safari Club International, the Sportsmen's Alliance and the Wisconsin DNR.

Wisconsin DNR chief applauds the pending delisting of the gray wolf.

Matt Frank, Wisconsin DNR Secretary, issued a December 13^th statement on the gray wolf in the Great Lakes region.

"We are pleased the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is moving forward to delist the gray wolf," said the Wisconsin DNR's Matt Frank. "Scientific evidence supports delisting. We have worked closely with the Department of the Interior on wolf delisting over the past two years and applaud Interior's proposed action to delist the gray wolf."

Federal delisting of the previously endangered species will allow Wisconsin and neighboring states' environmental officials to take on the task of monitoring and managing the gray wolf in their regions.

"The DNR has a federally approved wolf management plan ready to be implemented when delisting occurs," Matt Frank continued. "With the growth of the wolf population in Wisconsin, problems with wolves killing valuable livestock and hunting dogs have grown to intolerable levels. We are ready to carry out our federally approved state wolf management plan to both protect the long-term viability of the wolf and provide relief for farmers and pet owners."

Animal rights contenders may wonder exactly what shape state wolf management may take in the future, if the gray wolf is no longer considered a protected endangered species.

What is the gray wolf?

The largest member of the canine family, the gray wolf (canis lupus) stands two to three feet high at the shoulder and measures four to five feet from nose to tail tip. Although the males generally outweigh their female counterparts, most adult gray wolves weigh between 80and 90 pounds.

The average gray wolf - which may be gray, black, white or a blend of these hues - has a life expectancy of seven to ten years.

Gray wolves are skilled hunters, preying on badgers, birds, deer, dogs, foxes, mice, rabbits, squirrels and other creatures. Farmers have reported gray wolves attacking their livestock and poultry through the years.

Why was the gray wolf placed on the federal endangered species list?

In the late 1950s, the gray wolf population in the Upper Midwest had dwindled to nearly nothing. The attrition of the species was attributed largely to the suburban sprawl, canine parvovirus infections, farmers defending their livestock and wild animal bounty hunters.

Nearly 20 years later, the Wisconsin DNR monitored gray wolf populations, employing radio collars and studying tracks. In 1979, they documented 25 Wisconsin gray wolves. However, since the mid-1980s, the Wisconsin gray wolf population has steadily increased. By 2008, the Badger State DNR documented 549 wolves in Wisconsin.