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Impact of the Endangered Species Act on Wolves
Under the protections of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) wolf populations have reestablished in portions of the lower 48 states with gray wolves in the northern Rockies and Great Lakes, Mexican gray wolves in the Southwest and red wolves in the Southeast.
While significant progress has been made in recovering the wolf, there is still suitable habitat remaining in many areas of the United States that do not have wolves.
Currently, gray wolves are listed as endangered in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, New Mexico and portions of North Dakota, Utah, South Dakota, Ohio, Oregon and Washington. Portions of the Southwest are designated as non-essential experimental populations, which isolate geographically-described groups from other existing populations and offer special regulations. Red wolves, the other wolf species in the United States, are also listed as endangered under the ESA.
Recently, Defenders thoroughly re-examined the potential areas for wolf recovery and found realistic possibilities for increasing wolf populations in the United States in Places for Wolves: A Blueprint for Restoration and Long-Term Recovery in the Lower 48 States.
Defenders understands wolves are essential to the health of ecosystems, and has long advocated a careful assessment of potential biological, sociological, and economic impacts of wolf recovery throughout remaining suitable habitat in the lower 48 states.
From 1987 through 2007, Defenders paid nearly $1 million to ranchers in the northern Rockies and Southwest for livestock losses due to predation by wolves through the Defenders of Wildlife Wolf Compensation Trust. In addition to this program, Defenders actively explores measures to prevent conflicts with livestock in the first place through the Defenders of Wildlife Proactive Carnivore Conservation Fund.
Defenders works with landowners, resources agencies and local communities to adopt preventative methods including placement of livestock guarding dogs with livestock, hiring range riders to providing herding and monitoring assistance with livestock located near wolf-occupied areas and offering alternative grazing pastures away from wolf habitat.
Learn more in our Conservation Solutions section.
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