The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined in its initial 90-day review that petitions to add gray wolves in Idaho and Montana to the Endangered Species list "may be warranted" and will study the issue further.
"We find that the petitioners present credible and substantial information that human-caused mortality may be a potential threat to the species in Idaho and Montana," the agency wrote. "The petitioners also presented information suggesting that habitat modification due to a reduced prey base, disease, and loss of genetic diversity caused by isolation and small population size may be threats to the gray wolf. We will fully evaluate these and all other potential threats."
The petitions were submitted by the Center for Biological Diversity, the Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society Legislative Fund, and the Sierra Club.
In 2011, gray wolves in Idaho and Montana were removed from the Endangered Species list and management of the populations was handed over to state governments, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
"The five-year federal oversight period for Idaho and Montana ended in 2015, yet wolf populations remain well above minimum federal management objectives of 15 breeding pairs and 150 wolves in each state," the agency said on its website.
Although U.S. Fish and Wildlife found that relisting the wolf may be warranted, it cautioned that this is only a preliminary finding.
"Substantial 90-day findings require only that the petitioner provide information that the proposed action may be warranted," the agency said in a news release. "The next steps for the service include in-depth status reviews and analyses using the best available science and information to arrive at a 12-month finding on whether listing is warranted. If so, listing a species is done through a separate rulemaking process, with public notice and comment."
