Defenders of Wildlife Speaks Out Against Wisconsin’s Proposed Excessive Wolf Quota

Last week, Defenders of Wildlife urged the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board (WNRB) to substantially cut a quota proposed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) for this fall’s wolf hunting season to avoid further damaging the state’s wolf population. WNRB is currently considering a statewide harvest quota of 130 wolves for the November 2021 hunt.

“The proposed hunt quota is completely without scientific merit based on knowledge on the ground,” said Jamie Rappaport Clark, CEO and president of Defenders of Wildlife. “Wisconsin’s leaders have colossally failed to fully assess the damage of February’s disastrous wolf hunt, and now seem determined to repeat their past missteps.”

During the February 2021 hunting season, Wisconsin allocated 119 wolves for the hunt. However, within three days, a combination of permitted hunters and poachers shot or trapped at least 218 wolves. In total, up to a third of Wisconsin’s wolves were killed. 

“Wisconsin lost a significant percentage of its wolf population in February, and now it plans to barrel ahead with another catastrophic hunt,” said Serda Ozbenian, field conservation senior manager at Defenders of Wildlife. “The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is proving it is completely unable to manage its wolves responsibly.”

The WDNR now estimates there are between 944-1377 wolves in Wisconsin. However, as Defenders notes in their recent comments to WNRB, these stats omit the “number of pregnant females killed, number of poached wolves, and other human-caused mortality from the population estimate.” A recent University of Wisconsin paper estimates that another hundRed Wolves were killed by illegal poachers. Consequently, that study puts Wisconsin’s wolf population far lower than the state’s estimate, with between 695-751 wolves. 

The Wisconsin hunts are a product of the Trump administration’s decision to take away the gray wolf’s Endangered Species Act protections last year, which were stripped from wolves on January 3, 2021. Following the rule change, Wisconsin joined several other states—including Idaho, Wyoming and Montana—in enacting new or enforcing existing draconian anti-wolf policies. 

“Wisconsin’s repeated blunders show us that they—like several other states—are not ready to manage wolves in a responsible way,” said Clark. “The federal government’s premature removal of Endangered Species Act protections is sadly reversing decades of conservation progress for this iconic species. I urge the federal government to reinstate essential legal protections before more lasting damage is done.”

The Wisconsin Natural Resources Board will discuss WDNR’s quota recommendation during their annual meeting on August 11.