these animals have turned up, Refsnider
said.
Refsnider said the Service reclassified gray wolves in most of
the United States from endangered to threatened earlier this
year because populations are no longer in danger of extinction
there. The next step, he said, would be to remove wolves from
the federal list of endangered and threatened species and return
management of their populations to states and tribes.
Under their current status as threatened, gray wolves in the
western Great Lakes are protected by the Endangered Species Act.
But unlike animals classified as endangered, gray wolves may
now be managed with more flexibility. For example, wolves that
prey on domestic livestock or other domestic animals may be trapped
or killed by state, tribal, or federal agents.
But, reminds Service Resident Agent in Charge Tim Santel, wolves
are still protected under the Endangered Species Act and may
not be killed or harmed under most circumstances. He said the
wolves found in Indiana and Illinois had been shot, although
there are no plans to file charges in either case.
Santel said it is possible, as in the Missouri instance, that
a shooter mistook the animals for coyotes, but cautioned that
it is important to be sure of any target before firing.
Obviously, we don't expect to see a wolf in Indiana or Illinois,
but we should all be aware that the possibility exists, Santel
said.
In general, gray wolves are larger than coyotes, ranging from
60 to 115 pounds and standing 26 to 32 inches at the shoulder.
Coyotes typically weigh up to 50 pounds and measure up to 20
inches tall.
The chances of encountering a wild gray wolf in the back yard
outside of wolf country are not good. If you see a large canid
in Indiana, Illinois, or Missouri, you're most likely looking
at a coyote or a dog, or perhaps a wolf-dog hybrid, Refsnider
said. He suggests checking the "Was That a Wolf?" fact
sheet at www.wolf.org/wolves/learn/basic/wolves_humans.asp before
contacting state or federal wildlife officials.
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Gray wolves had been absent from Indiana and neighboring
states since the early 1900s, disappearing gradually "as
they did virtually nationwide -- due to intentional killing and
loss of habitat. The only remaining wolf population in the contiguous
United States for much of the 20th century was found in Minnesota.
Listed as an endangered species in 1967, gray wolves began to
rebound under protection of the Endangered Species Act of 1973,
and were aided by recovery programs launched by the Service,
states, tribes, and private groups.
The total gray wolf winter population in the western Great Lakes
area (Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin) is thought to number
more than 3,000 animals, with most in Minnesota. Gray wolves
also inhabit the northern Rocky Mountains in Idaho, Wyoming and
Montana. Some of these wolves were reintroduced by the Service
in Yellowstone National Park and in the central Idaho wilderness
in the 1990s. Northwestern Montana's wolf population was established
by wolves moving south from Canada. Gray wolves in the southwestern
United States, where reintroduction efforts are underway, remain
endangered.
More information on gray wolves, their habits, life history,
and identification, is available at the Services website at http://midwest.fws.gov/wolf/
That's it for state news for this issue.
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