Wolf Delisting Pt 1
I’m Bob Larson. The federal delisting of the Gray Wolf does not mean they lose their protections and will be hunted to extinction. They will now be managed by the state.
The Washington Farm Bureau’s Tom Davis says the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s decision was the right one, but it will likely be challenged …
DAVIS … “You know, sadly, even if it was just on principle, folks like Center for Biological Diversity, from their prospective, I think sadly they also use opportunities like this to get people worked up and fearful that all the wolves will now be wiped out. That’s not truthful, but sadly that’s what we’ve seen from that group in the past.”
So, the state, Davis says will continue to keep track of the wolves as a species …
DAVIS … “The wolf population needs to be managed in order to control the damage it can cause and just saying that causes some people to bristle. They just want the wolves to be able to roam freely and do whatever they want. And, we don’t really allow that for any other wildlife species in this state. We do control bears, we control cougars, coyotes for a reason and we hope that that’s where we end up with, at some point, with wolf management in Washington.”
With lawsuits likely, Davis says a final decision could take some time …
DAVIS … “I think it will be a couple of years at least. Because, whatever initial court decision we see, there likely will be an appeal. So, it will be a while unfortunately.”
But eventually, Davis believes the decision will stand and the wolves will be in good hands in terms of management.
