Montana Wolf Management Plan Calls for Significant Reduction in Wolf Population

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks yesterday released its final gray wolf conservation and management plan, which calls for an up to 60% reduction in the statewide wolf population. This plan revision comes two decades after the finalization of the previous wolf management plan and has been in the works since February 2023.

“This plan represents a narrow, ill-informed notion of wolf conservation and management,” said Eric Clewis, Northern Rockies senior representative for Defenders of Wildlife. “Managing for a bare-minimum population that hovers just above an endangered or threatened status falls far short of best conservation practices and hamstrings any hope of effectively managing a native wildlife species that provides vital value to the state’s ecosystems.”

The plan is a testament to Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks hostility towards wolves and ignores the fact that the majority of Montanans are supportive of wolf conservation. The state’s wolf population currently stands at an estimated 1,100 wolves across Montana’s vast 147,040 square miles.

Defenders submitted comments on the draft plan, urging Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to utilize best available science to inform its decision making and to encourage wolf conservation and management objectives that match the incredible worth that wolves lend to Montana’s ecosystems and people. 

“This plan represents what happens when our state agencies give in to pressure by lawmakers who are not experts in wildlife management and have been using a bare minimum of 450 individuals as a management goal in legislation. This is playing politics with wildlife management, not using the best available science,” said Clewis.

Gray wolves are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act in the Lower 48, with the exception of the Northern Rockies population which remains unlisted.

The new plan will take effect this year and will guide wolf management in Montana.

###