by Laurel Demkovich, Washington State Standard
June 24, 2024
The Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission will decide next month on lowering gray wolves’ status under the state’s endangered species law.
Environmentalists and others say this would lead to inadequate protection for the animals when they still haven’t recovered in parts of the state. State Department of Fish and Wildlife officials and others contend that not much would change in terms of how the animals are shielded from hunting and argue the move makes sense because wolf numbers have strongly rebounded.
The Department of Fish and Wildlife’s recommendation is to downlist wolves from “endangered” to “sensitive.”
In a Saturday meeting, wildlife commissioners had many questions about what that would mean for the species and appeared split on how to proceed.
“A downlisting recommendation has nothing to do with a wolf’s value,” said Julia Smith, Fish and Wildlife’s endangered species recovery manager. “It has everything to do with their legal and biological status.”
Even if the commission chooses to downlist the animals, wolves in the western two-thirds of the state would still be classified and protected as an endangered species under federal law.
The commission will meet next on July 19 to vote on the status change.