Once upon a time, wolves were hunted, trapped, poisoned and nearly eliminated across North America until they  finally gained the protections of the Endangered Species Act in 1973.

“The original wild wolves in Yellowstone were deliberately killed by the federal government during the period when it was government policy to exterminate the wolf everywhere, even inside national parks.” ~Ralph Maughan

Responding to massive public support, wolf re-introduction took place in the 1990’s, returning wolves to Yellowstone National Park and Central Idaho.  Apex predators like wolves are essential to a thriving, balanced ecosystem.  But just as the habitats began to respond positively to the increasing stability of wolf populations, a new wave of wolf mania grew… One may be led to suspect, perhaps, the panic grew in response to wolf related deaths, and inquire:

“The average number of people killed by wolves per year in the Lower-48?? Zero.  In the 21st century, only two known deaths have been attributed to wild wolves in all of North America.” (Defenders of Wildlife, Wolf Reality Check)

Even so, the first wolves were stripped of these protections in 2011, and lethal, unsustainable practices were sanctioned yet again, instituting another era of mass killings.   The status of wolves remains precarious.  Sadly, misguided perception and harsh policies combine to create the worst of the continuous threats facing these highly social pack animals, who are often misrepresented as brutal, savage beasts.  Despite the independent scientific recommendations against delisting wolves, in 2014, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) proposed removing Endangered Species Act protections, in a move Defenders of Wildlife aptly termed a “war on wolves.”

Rampant with images of a Big Bad Wolf, prematurely decreased protections and harsh policies too often ignore nonlethal methods for coexistence.  Instead it seems often policies are advanced that favor the demands of livestock producers for lethal over non-lethal management that protects wilderness heritage.  Wolves seem to hold a mythological place in the imagination, but right now they need people to let loose a howl of protest.

Much like the imagined Big Bad Wolf, the Endangered Species Act depends on big mouths: you can effect change for North American wolves today by speaking up!

Take Action to Keep Wolves Protected 

Take Action for wolves in the Northern Rockies