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Editor's Note: In 1998 the International Wolf Center invited concerned organizations to submit a position statement on the status of wolves
for distribution on its web site. A new request for current statements has gone out to these and other organizations and statements will
be updated as they are received. (return to list of Organizations)
At their annual meeting, the members of the Minnesota Chapter of the Wildlife
Society (MN T.W.S.) voted to support the delisting of the western Great Lakes
gray wolf (Canis lupus) population. Further, the members
requested that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service expedite this delisting process.
In making this recommendation, the members of MN T.W.S. ask the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to consider the following points.
- The gray wolf population in Minnesota has increased substantially, and this population is now stable.
- A second viable gray wolf population has been established in Wisconsin and Michigan.
- A Minnesota Wolf Management Plan will be submitted by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in autumn 1998.
- Delisting the gray wolf would free-up resources needed to help other wildlife species that are at risk.
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