Saving the Gray Wolf from Delisting on the Endangered Species List

The gray wolf plays a fundamental role in temperate and Arctic ecosystems. It was listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1975, and subsequent recovery plans enabled populations to become reestablished in the Great Lakes states and the West. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently published a proposed rule change that would remove the gray wolf and all of its subspecies, except the Mexican wolf, from protection under the Endangered Species Act. If the rule change passes, wolves migrating to the East Coast, where the species is currently extinct, from the Great Lakes area or to the Pacific Northwest from British Columbia would no longer receive federal protection. Previous delistings of other species were based on a numerical recovery goal; however, in the case of the wolves, the argument is that the gray wolf as described is composed of two distinct wolf species and therefore was inappropriately listed in 1975 as a single species. Researchers will provide the first ever complete genome DNA sequence data of both supposed wolf species to definitively test this presumption before the final delisting decision is made in fall 2014. Because delisting could result in the deaths of hundreds of wolves, this research will provide critical data for determining whether these animals will maintain federal protection.

This research is funded through the Betty White Wildlife Rapid Response Fund.