Wolves began naturally dispersing into Montana from Canada in the late 1970s. In 1995 and 1996, 66 wolves were released by game biologists in Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho. Since then, wolf numbers have grown steadily.
Before transferring management from the federal government to the state governments, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming are required to demonstrate that their management plans will ensure that wolves do not risk extinction in the region again. Unfortunately, instead of coming up with responsible, science-based plans, politics ruled the day in both Wyoming and Idaho during this phase. In contrast, Montana used a panel of local citizens to come up with a far more sustainable plan for wolves that tried to simultaneously address the needs of the general public.
Since that time, wolves have been removed from, then put back under, Endangered Species Protection. Wolves were relisted, primarily because of Wyoming’s shoot-on-sight policy in 88 percent of the state and Idaho’s plan to kill half of the state’s wolves in the first hunting season alone. For the latest information, visit our News and Events.
More than 200,000 gray wolves (Canis lupus) once lived throughout the United States. Aggressive, wildlife-killing campaigns led to wolf eradication and the disappearance of most of the elk, deer, and antelope from much of the country by the mid-1930s. For nearly 50 years, wolves were all but extinct in the lower 48 states. Consequently, when wolves began naturally dispersing from Canada into northwestern Montana in the late 1970s, they were protected under the Endangered Species Act. Natural dispersal soon led to a widespread call for restoration of native wolves, with the hope of returning natural balance to the Northern Rockies ecosystem. More than 100,000 people expressed their support for the release of wolves into central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park in the mid ’90s, both within the region and across the country.
Today, the regional wolf population has grown to more than 1,650 animals—a success—but still well below the historic level of wolves in the region. Since re-establishing packs, wolves have begun to restore natural balance to our ecosystems by culling weak and diseased elk, deer and other prey. They’ve also dispersed large herds away from sensitive wetlands and meadows that have suffered from decades of over-browsing. Regionally, elk and deer populations remain high. In fact, they are above state biologists’ target populations for optimal herd health in all three states.
While the increased numbers of wolves have increased livestock conflicts, some ranchers are learning to successfully reduce wolf predation to manageable levels. Conservation groups, such as Defenders of Wildlife, assist livestock owners with methods and tools to help reduce losses while state compensation programs compensate ranchers for the low level of loss that occurs. Meanwhile, an influx of tourist dollars has accompanied the return of wolves to the Yellowstone region, where wolf-related tourism generates more than $35 million annually for local communities.
In short, across the Northern Rockies, people are learning to live with wolves and to appreciate them as contributors to a healthy ecosystem and a thriving recreation economy.
© Western Wolf Coalition, 2009. View our Privacy Policy.
