Humane Society Releases Statement On Idaho's Wolf Law

BOISE, ID — In response to Governor Brad Little's signing of Senate Bill 1211 into law, the Humane Society of the United States issued the following:

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This week, Governor Brad Little signed a bill to kill up to 90% of Idaho’s wolves, allowing hundreds of wolves to face a cruel and painful death.

The bill not only puts the vast majority of Idaho’s wolves in the crosshairs of trophy hunters, trappers, private contractors and agency officials, but it allows them to be killed by incredibly cruel methods. Poisoning, strangling neck snares, shooting from an airplane or helicopter, killing mothers and pups in their dens, and countless other killing methods are all now fair game.

Additionally, S 1211 allows individual hunters and trappers to kill an unlimited number of wolves per season and extends the wolf trapping season to be year-round on private property across the state.

Idaho’s wolves keep the ecosystem healthy and biologically diverse. They manage their own population through the availability of prey and habitat and keep deer and elk herds strong. They do not pose a significant risk to livestock (from July 1, 2019-June 30, 2020, government officials confirmed just 102 conflicts between wolves and the more than 2.7 million cattle and sheep in the state) and studies show that killing them will not resolve the few conflicts that do occur.

Amanda Wight, program manager of wildlife protection for the Humane Society of the United States just released the following statement:

“Governor Little has signed a death warrant for hundreds of Idaho’s iconic and beloved wolves. This bill, which has no grounding in science or public values, demonstrates that Idaho can no longer responsibly manage its wolves. The time has come for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to step in and abide by their obligations to review and relist these imperiled animals under the Endangered Species Act now that Idaho is allowing unlimited killing.”

U.S. WOLF PROTECTION BACKGROUND

Hate-fueled, government-sponsored extermination and bounty programs brought gray wolves to near extinction in the lower 48 states by the early 20th century. By the time wolves were protected under the Endangered Species Act in 1974, there were just a few hundred left in northeastern Minnesota and a small handful on Isle Royale, Michigan. Over the last few decades, we have seen wolves slowly start to make a comeback, although they still remain absent from about 70% of currently suitable habitat.

Since the early 2000s, we have seen repeated attempts to prematurely remove federal protections for wolves. In April 2011, Congress delisted wolves in Idaho, Montana, and portions of Washington, Oregon, and Utah. Later that year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also removed federal protections for wolves in the Great Lakes region, and in 2012 the agency delisted wolves in Wyoming. While wolves in the Great Lakes region regained their federal ESA protections in 2014, they lost them once again when the agency delisted all gray wolves in the lower 48 in November 2020.

Regarding the Northern Rocky Mountain (NRM) population of gray wolves, The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has stated that three scenarios could lead to a status review and potential relisting of NRM gray wolves:

1. If the State wolf population falls below the minimum NRM wolf population recovery level of 10 breeding pairs of wolves and 100 wolves in either Montana or Idaho at the end of the year;

2. If the wolf population segment in Montana or Idaho falls below 15 breeding pairs or 150 wolves at the end of the year in either of those States for 3 consecutive years; or

3. If a change in State law or management objectives would significantly increase the threat to the wolf population.

By allowing an excessive and unprecedented level of wolf killing, S 1211 significantly increases the threat to the wolf population and could lead to a reconsideration of listing, including the potential for emergency listing, under the Endangered Species Act.

IDAHO WOLF BACKGROUND

Since losing federal protections in 2011, wolves in Idaho are increasingly being threatened by trophy hunters and trappers. Not only is there no statewide limit on the number of wolves that can be killed each year, but last year the Idaho Fish and Game Commission increased the number of wolves a single individual can kill to 30 and just last month the Commission expanded wolf hunting to year-round in much of the state and expanded the wolf trapping season to year-round on private land in most of the state. In 2020 alone, at least 407 wolves were killed by trophy hunters and trappers.

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