USFWS Sued For Denying Northern Grey Wolves ESA Protections

​worldanimalnews.com/new-lawsuit-aims-to-protect-wolves-in-northern-rocky-mountains-after-usfws-denied-them-protection/

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Several conservation organizations have sued the United States Fish and Wildlife Services after a decision that denied Northern Rocky wolves life-saving protections under the Endangered Species Act. The four conservation organizations have sued after a petition to relist wolves under the ESA was denied, despite the USWFS's own scientists stating rampant wolf killing could reduce wolf population by roughly 65%.

This is not the first time the USFWS has been sued for complete negligence in protecting species that are very clearly at risk. Instead, they pander to hunters / hunting states despite the science surrounding conservation and its importance.

The attack on wolves in the United States is not new. Grey wolves were listed under the Endangered Species Act for 45 years. That's 4 decades of protections that prevented their slaughter & funneled resources in to conservation / repopulation efforts. Grey wolves were callously delisted by the Trump Administration prior to his ousting from the White House. This left wolves unprotected with several U.S. states ramping up for wolf hunting season in lieu of this new ruling. In almost no time, states like Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming permitted wolf hunting and in some cases, awarded bounties for wolf slaughter. This disgusting, and almost immediate assault on wolves, proves that individual states CAN NOT manage their own grey wolf populations respectfully. 

Given that wolves spent 45 years protected, and in less than 5 years, have been eradicated to an extent that they once again require protections, is so disheartening and angering. This is not just an assault on predatory species, it's an assault on wildlife period. Is it not enough that we continue to take their homes from them in order to house our own? We pollute everything, force animals to live amongst trash and risk their lives to navigate our busy streets in search of food. What will it take to shift the perspective of the U.S. states who so desperately despise wolves? The fact is, we will not because they're livestock states and we all know how heavily protected the livestock / factory farmed meat industry is.

Wolves are opportunistic hunters and when it comes to livestock, there really couldn't be an easier target for a meal. With that being said, enclosures are so poorly reinforced that predatory species can easily access enclosures, endangering livestock. A solution to that problem in a perfect world would include properly reinforcing enclosures, knowing predatory animals are lurking. Instead, the solution is to slaughter predatory animals already in peril of endangerment. This complete lack of empathy towards a species that has struggled for 5 or more decades due to our own self serving ways, there's no changing their perspective. This is why federal endangered species protections are the only way to ensure that grey wolves remain on our planet for years to come.

My hope is that USFWS is relentlessly sued until they reverse course. So much valuable time, resources, and effort were expensed over those 45 years only to watch it be undone in less than a decade. We have to stop this cycle of violence against wolves.

HAPPY VEG