Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Revising the Listing of the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) in the Western Great Lakes

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

[Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2011-0029; FXES11130900000C6-123-FF09E32000]

RIN 1018-AX57

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Revising the Listing of the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) in the Western Great Lakes

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service or USFWS) are revising the 1978 listing of the Minnesota population of gray wolves (

Canis lupus

) to conform to current statutory and policy requirements. We rename what was previously listed as the Minnesota population of the gray wolf as the Western Great Lakes (WGL) Distinct Population Segment (DPS), and delineate the boundaries of the expanded Minnesota population segment to include all of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan and portions of the adjacent states. We are removing the WGL DPS from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. We are taking this action because the best available scientific and commercial information indicates that the WGL DPS does not meet the definitions of threatened or endangered under the Act.

This final rule also removes the designated critical habitat for the wolf in Minnesota and Michigan and the special regulations under section 4(d) of the Act for wolves in Minnesota.

We are separating our determination on the delisting of the Western Great Lakes DPS from the determination on our proposal regarding all or portions of the 29 eastern States we considered to be outside the historical range of the gray wolf. This rule finalizes our determination for the WGL DPS. A subsequent decision will be made for the rest of the eastern United States.

DATES:

This rule becomes effective on January 27, 2012.

ADDRESSES:

This final rule is available on the Internet at

http://www.regulations.gov

and at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Midwest Regional Office, 5600 American Boulevard West, Suite 990, Bloomington, Minnesota 55437. Comments and materials we received, as well as supporting documentation we used in preparing this final rule, are available for public inspection on

http://www.regulations.gov

at Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2011-0029, or by appointment, during normal business hours at the following Ecological Services offices:

• Twin Cities, Minnesota Ecological Services Field Office, 4101 American Blvd. E., Bloomington, MN; (612) 725-3548.

• Green Bay, Wisconsin Ecological Services Field Office, 2661 Scott Tower Dr., New Franken, WI; (920) 866-1717.

• East Lansing, Michigan Ecological Services Field Office, 2651 Coolidge Road, Suite 101, East Lansing, MI; (517) 351-2555.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Laura Ragan, (612) 713-5350. Direct all questions or requests for additional information to: GRAY WOLF QUESTIONS, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 5600 American Boulevard West, Suite 990, Bloomington, Minnesota 55437. Additional information is also available on our Web site at

http://www.fws.gov/midwest/wolf.

Individuals who are hearing-impaired or speech-impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-(800) 877-8337 for TTY assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Previous Federal Actions for WGL Wolves

The eastern timber wolf (

Canis lupus lycaon

) was listed as endangered in Minnesota and Michigan in the first list of species that were protected under the 1973 Act, published in May 1974 (USDI 1974). On March 9, 1978, we published a rule (43 FR 9607) reclassifying the gray wolf at the species level (

Canis lupus

) as endangered throughout the conterminous 48 States and Mexico, except for the Minnesota population, which we classified to threatened. The separate subspecies listings, including

C. l. lycaon,

thus were subsumed into the listings for the gray wolf in Minnesota and the gray wolf in the rest of the conterminous United States and Mexico. We considered the Minnesota group of gray wolves to be a listable entity under the Act, and listed it as threatened; we considered the gray wolf group in Mexico and the 48 conterminous States other than Minnesota to be another listable entity, and listed it as endangered (43 FR 9607, 9610, respectively, March 9, 1978). This reclassification was undertaken because of uncertainty about the taxonomic validity of some of the previously listed subspecies and because we recognized that wolf populations were historically connected, and that subspecies boundaries were thus malleable.

However, the 1978 rule also stated that “biological subspecies would continue to be maintained and dealt with as separate entities” (43 FR 9609), and offered “the firmest assurance that [the Service] will continue to recognize valid biological subspecies for purposes of its research and conservation programs” (43 FR 9610, March 9, 1978). Accordingly, recovery plans were developed for the wolf populations in the following regions of the United States: the northern Rocky Mountains in 1980, revised in 1987; the eastern U.S. in 1978, revised in 1992; and the Southwest in 1982, the revision of which is now under way.

In the 1978 rule, we also identified Isle Royale National Park, Michigan, and Minnesota wolf management zones 1, 2, and 3, as critical habitat. We also promulgated special regulations under section 4(d) of the Act for operating a wolf management program in Minnesota at that time. The depredation control portion of the special regulation was later modified (50 FR 50793; December 12, 1985); these special regulations are found in 50 CFR 17.40(d)(2).

On April 1, 2003, we published a final rule revising the listing status of the gray wolf across most of the conterminous United States (68 FR 15804). Within that rule, we identified three DPSs for the gray wolf, including an Eastern DPS, which was reclassified from endangered to threatened, except where already classified as threatened. In addition, we established a second section 4(d) rule that applied provisions similar to those previously in effect in Minnesota to most of the Eastern DPS. The special rule was codified in 50 CFR 17.40(o).

U.S. District Court rulings in Oregon and Vermont on January 31, 2005, and August 19, 2005, respectively, invalidated the April 1, 2003, final rule. Consequently, the status of gray wolves outside of Minnesota reverted back to endangered status, as had been the case prior to the 2003 reclassification. The courts also invalidated the three DPSs identified in the April 1, 2003, rule, as well as the associated special regulations.

On March 27, 2006, we published a proposal (71 FR 15266-15305) to identify a WGL DPS of the gray wolf, to remove the WGL DPS from the protections of the Act, to remove designated critical habitat for the gray wolf in Minnesota and Michigan, and to remove special regulations for the gray wolf in Minnesota. The proposal was followed by a 90-day comment period,

during which we held four public hearings on the proposal.

On February 8, 2007, the Service issued a rule that identified and delisted the WGL DPS of the gray wolf (

Canis lupus

) (72 FR 6052). Three parties challenged this rule (

Humane Society of the United States

v.

Kempthorne,

579 F. Supp. 2d 7 (D.D.C. 2008)), and on September 29, 2008, the court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and vacated the rule and remanded it to the Service.

On December 11, 2008, we published a notice reinstating protections for the gray wolf in the western Great Lakes (and northern Rocky Mountains) pursuant to court orders (73 FR 75356).

On April 2, 2009, we published a final rule identifying the western Great Lakes populations of gray wolves as a DPS and revising the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife by removing the DPS from that list (74 FR 15070). We did not seek additional public comment on the 2009 final rule. On June 15, 2009, five parties filed a complaint against the Department and the Service alleging that we violated the Act, the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), and the court's remand order by publishing the 2009 final rule (74 FR 15070). On July 2, 2009, pursuant to a settlement agreement between the parties, the court issued an order remanding and vacating the 2009 final rule.

On March 1, 2000, we received a petition from Mr. Lawrence Krak of Gilman, Wisconsin, and on June 28, 2000, we received a petition from the Minnesota Conservation Federation. Mr. Krak's petition requested the delisting of gray wolves in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. The Minnesota Conservation Federation requested the delisting of gray wolves in a Western Great Lakes DPS. Because the data reviews resulting from the processing of these petitions would be a subset of the review begun by our July 13, 2000, proposal (65 FR 43450) to revise the current listing of the wolf across most of the conterminous United States, we did not initiate separate reviews in response to those two petitions. While we addressed these petitions in our February 8, 2007, final rule (72 FR 6052), this rule was vacated by the subsequent District Court ruling. While we view our actions on these petitions as final upon publication of the

Federal Register

determinations, we nevertheless restate our 90-day findings that the action requested by each of the petitions may be warranted, as well as our 12-month finding that the action requested by each petition is warranted.

On March 15, 2010, we received a petition from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources requesting that the gray wolf in Minnesota be removed from the List of Endangered or Threatened Wildlife under the Act. Likewise, on April 26, 2010, we received a petition from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources requesting that the gray wolf in Minnesota and Wisconsin be delisted. On April 26, 2010, we received a petition from the Sportsmen's Alliance, representing five other organizations, requesting that gray wolves in the Great Lakes area be delisted. On June 17, 2010, we received a petition from Safari Club International, Safari Club International Foundation, and the National Rifle Association of America requesting that wolves of the western Great Lakes be delisted. In response to those four petitions, on September 14, 2010, we published a 90-day finding determining that the petitions presented substantial information that delisting may be warranted and reinitiated a full status review.

We published a proposal to revise the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife for the gray wolf (

Canis lupus

) in the eastern United States and to initiate status reviews for the gray wolf and for the eastern wolf (

Canis lycaon

) on May 5, 2011 (76 FR 26806)

.

On August 26, 2011, we published a notice (76 FR 53379) reopening the public comment period on the May 5, 2011, proposal. We reopened the comment period to allow for additional public review and the inclusion of any new information, specifically concerning North American wolf taxonomy. That notice also informed the public that we were considering issuing separate final rules for our final determinations on the proposed delisting of the Western Great Lakes DPS and the proposed determination regarding all or portions of the 29 States considered to be outside the historical range of the gray wolf. On September 19, 2011, the Service published a notice (76 FR 57943) informing the public that supplementary materials were available. In recognition of intellectual property right laws, the manuscript made available on August 26 provided readers with references to the sources of several copyrighted figures, but did not include the figures themselves. The Service subsequently obtained approval to include all copyrighted figures in the manuscript and on September 7, 2011, uploaded a complete copy of the manuscript to

http://www.regulations.gov.

Conformance With the Act's Definition of Species

Given the assurances we provided in the 1978

Canis lupus

listing that we would continue to treat gray wolf subspecies as separate entities for conservation purposes (as noted in Previous Federal Actions for WGL Wolves, above), we identified a need to reconsider the listing in light of current statutory and policy standards regarding the Act's definition of species. The Act provides for listing at various taxonomic and subtaxonomic levels through its definition of “species” in section 3(16): The term species includes any subspecies of fish or wildlife or plants, and any distinct population segment of any species of vertebrate fish or wildlife which interbreeds when mature (16 U.S.C. 1532(16). As a matter of procedure, then, the Service determines whether it is most appropriate to list an entity as a full species, a subspecies, or a DPS of either a species or subspecies. The gray wolf has a Holarctic range; the current listing encompasses the United States-Mexico segment of the range and consists, in turn, of multiple entities.

The specific provision for listing distinct population segments of vertebrates was enacted through the 1978 amendments to the Act (Pub. L. 95-362, November 10, 1978); these amendments replaced the ability to list “populations” with the ability to list “distinct population segments” and treat them as “species” under the Act. To interpret and implement the 1978 DPS amendment, the Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service jointly published the Policy Regarding the Recognition of Distinct Vertebrate Population Segments Under the Endangered Species Act (DPS policy) (61 FR 4722, February 7, 1996), setting policy standards for designating populations as “distinct.”

The March 1978 gray wolf listing predated the November 1978 amendments to the Act. Although the 1978 rule lists two

C. lupus

entities,

i.e.,

the endangered and threatened entities described above, these listings were not predicated upon a formal DPS analysis and do not comport with current policy standards. Nonetheless, subsequent recovery plans and all gray wolf rulemakings since 1996 have focused on units reflective of the evident intent of the 1978 rule to manage and recover the different gray wolf groups covered by the 1978 listings as ”separate entities” (43 FR 9609),

i.e.,

subspecies or populations. This rule revises the 1978 threatened listing to bring that listing in line, insofar as possible, with the Act's

requirements and current policy standards.

Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region

The taxonomic status of the wolves in the western Great Lakes region has long been debated. They have been considered a subspecies of gray wolf,

Canis lupus lycaon

(Goldman 1944; Hall and Kelson 1959); a second subspecies of gray wolves,

Canis lupus nubilis

(Nowak 1995, 2002, 2003); a

Canis lupus

population that has been influenced by interbreeding with coyotes (Lehman

et al.

1991, Koblmüller

et al.

2009; vonHoldt

et al.

2011); members of a full species

Canis lycaon

(or eastern wolf) that is considered separate from

Canis lupus

(Wilson

et al.

2000; Baker

et al.

2003); possibly the same species as the red wolf,

C. rufus

(Wilson

et al.

2000); the result of hybridization between

C. rufus

and

C. lupus

(Nowak 2002, 2003, 2009); and as a mixed population of

C. lupus, C. lycaon,

and their intercrosses (hybrids) (Wheeldon and White 2009; Fain

et al.

2010; Wheeldon

et al.

2010). These varying interpretations of the taxonomic status of western Great Lakes wolves are summarized, respectively, below.

Wolves in Michigan, Wisconsin, and eastern Minnesota were considered by Goldman (1944, p. 437 and Figure 14) to be within the range of the subspecies

Canis lupus lycaon.

Goldman based his classification on variation in body size and proportions, and in pelage (coat) color. According to Goldman, this was the subspecies of gray wolf historically found across a wide range east of the Mississippi River in the United States and in southeastern Canada. Wolves immediately to the west of the Mississippi River were considered to be part of the subspecies

Canis lupus nubilus.

This taxonomic interpretation was followed by Hall and Kelson (1959, p. 849) and Hall (1981, p. 932).

Based on a study of DNA variation in North American wolves, Wilson

et al.

(2000, p. 2165) proposed that the taxonomic standing of eastern wolves be elevated to full species as

Canis lycaon.

They found that eastern wolves were divergent from

Canis lupus

in both mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal microsatellite DNA composition. They considered the geographic range of

C. lycaon

as extending west across the Great Lakes region to Minnesota and Manitoba.

Nowak's (2002, p. 119; 2003, p. 243) revision of the subspecies taxonomy reduced the range of

C. l. lycaon

to southern Ontario and Quebec and northern portions of New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Nowak's classification was primarily based on statistical analysis of measurements of skull features. He considered gray wolves that historically occupied Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota to be within the range of

C. l. nubilus.

Based on analysis of additional specimens, Nowak (2002, p. 119; 2003; 2009, p. 238) continued to recognize western Great Lakes wolves as

C. l. nubilus,

but noted that historical specimens from the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan were somewhat transitional between the two subspecies.

Leonard and Wayne (2008, pp. 2-3) have reported on maternally inherited mtDNA sequence haplotypes (DNA sequences or groups of alleles of different genes on a single chromosome that are inherited together as a single unit) from historical (“prerecovery”) wolves from Ontario, Quebec, Michigan, and Wisconsin compared with the recent population of the area. Their interpretation of these results is that the 6 unique haplotypes) identified in 15 historical individuals indicate that the pre-recovery population was “an endemic American wolf,” which they call “the Great Lakes wolf” (p. 1). However, only the two haplotypes most common in the historical sample still occur in the modern wolf population of the western Great Lakes area. Leonard and Wayne (2008) conclude that the modern population does not contain the diversity of Great Lakes wolf haplotypes found in the prerecovery population and that the current population is primarily a mixture of

Canis lupus

and coyote hybrids, with minor influence from the endemic Great Lakes wolf (p. 3).

Koblmüller

et al.

(2009) examined wolves from the Great Lakes region (they do not separate between the western and eastern Great Lakes) using three types of genetic markers: mtDNA; Y-chromosome haplotypes based on microsatellite DNA loci on the Y-chromosome, which is a paternally inherited marker; and autosomal microsatellite DNA, which provides information on recent and ongoing interactions among populations rather than evolutionary lineage information. The historical sample from Minnesota was found to exhibit a third Great Lakes wolf mtDNA haplotype that is common in the modern population. However, the Y-chromosome haplotypes identified in the historical sample were more similar to those of western gray wolves, suggesting that interbreeding between Great Lakes wolves and western gray wolves had taken place before 1910, the year of collection.

Koblmüller

et al.

(2009) conclude that, despite what they consider to be both ancient and recent incidences of interbreeding with coyotes and western gray wolves, Great Lakes wolves remain morphologically distinct and represent a “distinct taxon” of gray wolf (

Canis lupus

) that is adapted to the region. They do not, however, conclude that this taxon is differentiated enough to be recognized as a species separate from gray wolves, as proposed by Wilson

et al.

(2000).

Several recent studies conclude that the eastern wolf is a unique species and should be recognized as

C. lycaon

(Wheeldon and White 2009; Wilson

et al.

2009; Fain

et al.

2010, p. 15; Wheeldon

et al.

2010). Wheeldon and White (2009, pp. 3-4) state that both the present-day and pre-recovery wolf populations in the western Great Lakes region are genetically similar and that both were derived from hybridization between

C. lupus

and the eastern wolf,

C. lycaon.

Fain

et al.

(2010, p. 10) recognize

C. lycaon

as a unique species of North American wolf, and based on mtDNA and Y-chromosome haplotypes and autosomal microsatellite markers, they establish that the population of wolves in the western Great Lakes region comprise

C. lupus, C. lycaon,

and their hybrids. Contrary to Koblmüller

et al.

(2009), Fain

et al.

(2010, p. 14) found no evidence of interbreeding with coyotes. Furthermore, they conclude that the western Great Lakes States were included in the historical range of

C. lycaon

and that hybridization between the two species “predates significant human intervention” (Fain

et al.

2010, pp. 13-14).

Wheeldon

et al.

(2010, p. 2) used multiple genetic markers in an attempt to clarify the taxonomic status of

Canis

species in the western Great Lakes region of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and western Ontario. They conclude that the current western Great Lakes wolf population is “composed of gray-eastern wolf hybrids that probably resulted from historic hybridization between the parental species” (Wheeldon

et al.

2010, p. 10), and that the appropriate taxonomic designation for the western Great Lakes hybrid wolves is

C. lupus × lycaon.

Recently, vonHoldt

et al.

(2011) examined single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to investigate the genetic distinctiveness of North American canids. They conclude that wolves from the Great Lakes region are the product of low-level hybridization between coyotes and

C. lupus

that likely occurred prior to the recent invasion of coyotes into the area and found no evidence that

C. lycaon

exists as a distinct species (vonHoldt

et al.

2011, pp. 8-9). They further find that Great

Lakes wolves are genetically distinct from other North American gray wolves and coyotes, but to what degree remains controversial (vonHoldt

et al.

2011, p. 8). This study represents a new system for genetic testing using the whole genome of organisms. This new genetic testing system using SNPs promises to open new opportunities for studying the ancestry and relatedness of canid populations.

Chambers

et al.

(2011, in prep.) conducted a review of the available scientific literature to assess the taxonomic standing of wolves in North America. They conclude the most supportable interpretation is that the eastern wolf is not a subspecies (

C. lupus lycaon

), but a full species (

C. lycaon

). This is based on the available mtDNA and Y-chromosome haplotype data (pp. 91-95). The Service believes the Chambers

et al.

(in prep.) manuscript (that includes the information on which we at least partially based our proposal) is an important synthesis of the available data that advances and focuses the debate regarding canid taxonomy in North America. The authors themselves acknowledge, nevertheless, that further research may change some of their conclusions (p. 128).

Wolf taxonomic classification is a fast-changing field in which research capabilities have greatly expanded in recent years. It is clear from the studies discussed above that the taxonomic classification of wolves in the western Great Lakes region is one that has been, and will continue to be, debated in the scientific community. Most researchers, however, agree that there is a unique and genetically identifiable form of wolf that occupies the western Great Lakes region. Researchers differ in whether this unique form of wolf should be recognized as a species, a subspecies, or a distinct taxon or ecotype. The taxonomic identity of eastern wolves has been controversial since Wilson

et al.

(2000) first claimed that eastern wolves are a separate species (

Canis lycaon

) from the western wolf (

Canis lupus

). In our May 5, 2011, proposed rule (76 FR 26806), we proposed to resolve the ongoing controversy over the classification of wolves in the western Great Lakes region by accepting what we considered at the time to be the best scientific interpretation of the available data and information. The scientific community then had the opportunity to review our analysis and respond to it through the public and peer review processes. Comments on the proposed rule, including comments provided by leading researchers in the field of canid biology and genetics, have led us to reconsider our proposed interpretation. While Chambers

et al.

(in prep.) provide a scientific basis for arguing the existence of eastern wolves as a distinct species, this represents neither a scientific consensus nor the majority opinion of researchers on the taxonomy of wolves, as others continue to argue that eastern wolves are forms of gray wolves (Koblmüller

et al.

2009, vonHoldt

et al.

2011). In light of the ongoing scientific debate, and the lack of clear resolution concerning the taxonomy of wolves in the western Great Lakes, we are at this time continuing to recognize

C. lupus

as the only species that occurs in the WGL. The wolves that occupy the WGL DPS have long been accepted as gray wolves,

C. lupus,

and until greater scientific consensus is reached regarding whether to revise this taxonomic classification, the better conclusion is to continue to recognize them as gray wolves.

Wolf-Coyote Relationships

For a discussion on interpretations of wolf-coyote relationships in the western Great Lakes, see the discussion under Factor E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting Its Continued Existence in this final rule.

Biology and Ecology of Wolves in the Western Great Lakes

For a discussion of the biology and ecology of wolves in the WGL, see the proposed WGL wolf rule published on May 5, 2011 (76 FR 26806-26145).

Distinct Vertebrate Population Segment Policy Overview

Pursuant to the Act, we consider whether the best scientific and commercial data available are sufficient to indicate that listing, reclassifying, or delisting any species, subspecies, or, for vertebrates, any DPS of these taxa may be warranted. To interpret and implement the DPS provision of the Act and congressional guidance, the Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) published a policy regarding the identification of distinct vertebrate population segments under the Act (Policy Regarding the Recognition of Distinct Vertebrate Population Segments Under the Endangered Species Act, 61 FR 4722, February 7, 1996) (hereafter DPS Policy). Under the DPS policy, two factors are considered in a decision regarding the potential identification of a DPS: (1) Discreteness of the population segment in relation to the remainder of the taxon, and (2) the significance of the population segment to the taxon to which it belongs. If a population meets both tests, it can be identified as a DPS. Then a third factor, the DPS's conservation status, is evaluated in relation to the Act's standards for listing, delisting, or reclassification, meaning that we undertake an analysis to determine whether the DPS is endangered or threatened or does not meet the criteria for listing. All three steps are necessary components of a complete DPS analysis.

Past Practice and History of Using DPSs

As of December 8, 2011, of the 388 native vertebrate listings, 80 are listed as less than an entire taxonomic species or subspecies (henceforth referred to in this discussion as populations) under one of several authorities, including the “distinct population segment” language in the Act's definition of species (section 3(16)). Thirty-three of these 80 populations, which span 49 different taxa, predate the 1996 DPS Policy; as such, the final listing determinations for these populations did not include formal policy-based analyses or expressly designate the listed entity as a DPS. In several instances, however, the Service and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) have established a DPS and revised the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife in a single action, as shown in the following examples.

In February 1985, the Service delisted the brown pelican (

Pelecanus occidentalis

) in the southeastern United States and continued to identify it as endangered throughout the remainder of its range (50 FR 4938). In June 1994, NMFS revised the entry for the gray whale (

Eschrichtius robustus

) to remove the eastern North Pacific population from the List while retaining the western North Pacific population as endangered (59 FR 31094). In July 2003, the Service established two DPSs of the Columbian white-tailed deer (

Odocoileus virginianus leucurus

)—the Douglas County DPS and the Columbia River DPS—and delisted only the Douglas County DPS, while retaining listed status for the Columbia River DPS (68 FR 43647). In March 2007, the Service established a DPS of the grizzly bear (

Ursus arctos horribilis

) for the Greater Yellowstone Area and surrounding area within the existing grizzly bear listing in the lower 48 States, and delisted this DPS (72 FR 14865). This decision was later vacated by the court; however, not on the grounds of the DPS. Also in March 2007, the Service identified the American crocodile (

Crocodylus acutus

) in Florida as a DPS within the existing endangered listing of the American crocodile and reclassified the Florida DPS from endangered to threatened (71

FR 13027). Revising and delisting the WGL DPS of wolves is consistent with the Service's past practice and does not represent a change in agency position.

On February 8, 2007, the Service issued a rule that identified and delisted the WGL DPS of the gray wolf (

Canis lupus

) (72 FR 6052). Three parties challenged this rule (

Humane Society of the United States

v.

Kempthorne,

579 F. Supp. 2d 7 (D.D.C. 2008)), and on September 29, 2008, the court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and vacated the rule and remanded it to the Service. On remand, the Service was directed to provide an explanation as to how simultaneously identifying and delisting a DPS is consistent with the Act's text, structure, policy objectives, legislative history, and any relevant judicial interpretations. The court's primary question was whether the Service has the authority to identify a DPS within a larger already-listed entity and, in the same decision, determine the DPS does not warrant the Act's protections even though the other populations of the species retain the original listing status.

Our authority to make these determinations and to revise the list accordingly is a reasonable interpretation of the language of the Act, and our ability to do so is an important component of the Service's program for the conservation of threatened and endangered species. Our authority to revise the existing listing of a species (the gray wolf in Minnesota and the gray wolf in the lower 48 States and Mexico, excluding Minnesota) to identify a Western Great Lakes DPS and determine that it is healthy enough that it no longer needs the Act's protections is found in the precise language of the Act. Moreover, even if that authority were not clear, our interpretation of this authority to make determinations under section 4(a)(1) and to revise the endangered and threatened species list to reflect those determinations under section 4(c)(1) is reasonable and fully consistent with the Act's text, structure, legislative history, relevant judicial interpretations, and policy objectives.

We consulted with the Solicitor of the Department of the Interior to address the issue in the court's opinion. On December 12, 2008, a formal opinion was issued by the Solicitor, “U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Authority Under Section 4(c)(1) of the Endangered Species Act to Revise Lists of Endangered and Threatened Species to `Reflect Recent Determinations' ” (U.S. DOI 2008). The Service fully agrees with the analysis and conclusions set out in the Solicitor's opinion. This final action is consistent with the opinion. The complete text of the Solicitor's opinion can be found at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/wolf/.

Western Great Lakes Distinct Population Segment

In 1978, based on what was at that time the best available biological data, the Service stated that there were two “species” of gray wolves in the coterminous United States: “For purposes of this rulemaking, the gray wolf (

Canis lupus

) group in Mexico and the 48 conterminous States of the United States, other than Minnesota, is being considered as one `species,' and the gray wolf group in Minnesota is being considered as another `species.' (43 FR 9607, 9610, March 9, 1978). The Service then assigned a different status under the Act to each of those two “species,” finding the Minnesota gray wolf `species' to be threatened, while the other gray wolf “species” (the 48 conterminous States, except Minnesota, and in Mexico) to be endangered. The 1978 rule referred to the Minnesota listing as the listing of a “species” when, clearly, based on the information available at that time, the Minnesota wolves did not taxonomically constitute a separate species of wolf. However, ever since the amendment to the Act later in 1978 that revised the definition of “species” to include distinct population segments of vertebrate fish or wildlife, the 1978 Minnesota gray wolf listing has functioned effectively as a DPS.

The DPS Policy (61 FR 4725, February 7, 1996) expressly provides for reexamining pre-policy DPS listings: “Any DPS of a vertebrate taxon that was listed prior to implementation of this policy will be reevaluated on a case-by-case basis as recommendations are made to change the listing status for that distinct population segment. The appropriate application of the policy will also be considered in the 5-year reviews of the status of listed species required by section 4(c)(2) of the Act.” Based on this provision, we are, within this rule, (1) recognizing that the 1978 Minnesota listing has functioned effectively as a DPS, (2) reevaluating that listing by applying the same reevaluation process to this and other de facto DPSs that we apply to formally established DPSs, and (3) revising that de facto DPS listing to meet the criteria in the DPS policy and to reflect the best available biological data.

A gray wolf DPS including only Minnesota would not meet the criteria in the DPS policy because it would not be discrete “in relation to the remainder of the species to which it belongs” (61 FR 4725, February 7, 1996). The Minnesota wolf population has expanded well beyond State boundaries and is connected to the wolf population in Wisconsin and Michigan, as evidenced by frequent movements of wolves among the States (Van Deelen 2009, p. 140; Treves

at al.

2009, pp. 192-195) and genetic analyses that demonstrate the Wisconsin and Michigan wolves are mostly of the same genetic makeup as Minnesota wolves (Wheeldon and White 2009, p. 4; Fain

et al.

2010). Therefore, we are revising the boundaries of the Minnesota DPS to meet the criteria in the DPS policy and to reflect the current geographic location of the population as discussed under the

Distinct Population Segment Analysis,

below.

Geographical Area of the Western Great Lakes DPS

The geographical area of the WGL DPS is shown in figure 1, below, and is described as all of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan; the portion of North Dakota north and east of the Missouri River upstream to Lake Sakakawea and east of the centerline of Highway 83 from Lake Sakakawea to the Canadian border; the portion of South Dakota north and east of the Missouri River; the portions of Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana north of the centerline of Interstate Highway 80; and the portion of Ohio north of the centerline of Interstate Highway 80 and west of the Maumee River at Toledo.

ER28DE11.000

Distinct Population Segment Analysis

Analysis for Discreteness

Under the 1996 DPS Policy (61 FR 4722), a population segment of a vertebrate taxon may be considered discrete if it satisfies either of the following conditions: (1) It is markedly separated from other populations of the same taxon as a consequence of physical, physiological, ecological, or behavioral factors (quantitative measures of genetic or morphological discontinuity may provide evidence of this separation); or (2) it is delimited by international governmental boundaries within which differences in control of exploitation, management of habitat, conservation status, or regulatory mechanisms exist that are significant in light of section 4(a)(1)(D) of the Act.

Markedly Separated from Other Populations of the Same Taxon

—The western boundaries of the WGL DPS are approximately 400 mi (644 km) from the nearest known gray wolf packs in Wyoming and Montana. The distance between those western packs and the nearest packs within the WGL DPS is nearly 600 mi (966 km). The area between Minnesota packs and northern Rocky Mountains (NRM) packs largely consists of unsuitable habitat, with only scattered islands of possibly suitable habitat, such as the Black Hills of eastern Wyoming and western South Dakota. There are no known populations of gray wolves to the south or east of the WGL DPS within the United States.

As discussed in the previous section, wolves are known to disperse over vast distances, but straight-line documented dispersals of 400 mi (644 km) or more are very rare. Only three records exist of tagged wolves dispersing from within the core of the WGL DPS that were known to travel a straight-line distance over 400 mi (644 km) (Treves

et al.

2009). Although we cannot rule out the possibility of a WGL wolf traveling 600 mi (966 km) or more and joining or establishing a pack in the northern Rockies, such a movement has not been documented and is expected to happen very infrequently, if at all. Similar movements from the NRM wolf population into the WGL DPS are unknown and are expected to happen infrequently. The 2006 Sturgis (South Dakota) wolf is the closest that an NRM wolf has come to entering the WGL DPS (Fain in litt. 2006); however, the Sturgis

wolf would still have had to travel over 300 mi (500 km) before encountering the nearest wolf pack in the WGL DPS. As the discreteness criterion requires that the DPS be “markedly separated” from other populations of the taxon rather than requiring complete isolation, this high degree of physical separation between the WGL DPS and the northern Rocky Mountains satisfies the discreteness criterion.

Delimited by International Boundaries With Significant Management Differences—The DPS policy allows us to use international borders to delineate the boundaries of a DPS if there are differences in control of exploitation, conservation status, or regulatory mechanisms between the countries. The border between the United States and Canada has been used as the northern boundary of the listed entity since gray wolves were reclassified in the lower 48 States and Mexico in 1978. There remain significant cross-border differences in exploitation, management, conservation status, and regulatory mechanisms. About 52,000 to 60,000 wolves occur in Canada, where suitable habitat is abundant (Boitani 2003, p. 322). Because of this abundance, wolves in Canada are not protected by Federal laws and are only minimally protected in most Canadian provinces (Pletscher

et al.

1991, p. 546). In the United States, unlike Canada, Federal protection and intensive management has been necessary to recover the wolf (Carbyn 1983).

In general, Canadian gray wolf populations are sufficiently large and healthy so that population regulation, rather than protection and close monitoring, is the management focus. There are an estimated 4,000 wolves in Manitoba (Manitoba Conservation undated). Hunting is allowed nearly province-wide, including in those provincial hunting zones adjoining northwestern Minnesota, with this year's season running from August 31, 2011, through March 31, 2012 (Manitoba Conservation 20011a). Trapping wolves is allowed province-wide, except in and immediately around Riding Mountain National Park (southwestern Manitoba), with this year's season running from September 1, 2011 through August 31, 2012 or October 14, 2011 through March 31, 2012 (varies with trapping zone) (Manitoba Conservation 20011b).

The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources estimates there are 8,850 wolves in the province, based on prey composition and abundance, topography, and climate, and wolf numbers in most parts of the province are believed to be stable or increasing since about 1993 (Ontario MNR 2005a, pp. 7-9). In 2005, Ontario limited hunting and trapping of wolves by closing the season from April 1 through September 14 in central and northern Ontario (Ontario MNR 2005b). In the portion of Ontario that is adjacent to the WGL DPS, wolf hunting and trapping is permitted year round (Ontario MNR 2005c). If delisted, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan would carefully monitor and manage wolves to retain populations at or above the recovery goal (see Factor D). Therefore, even though biologically the WGL wolf population is simply a well-connected southern extension of wolves in Canada, we will continue to use the United States-Canada border to mark the northern boundary of the DPS due to the difference in control of exploitation, conservation status, and regulatory mechanisms between the two countries.

Conclusion

—Based on our analysis of the best available scientific information, the WGL DPS is markedly separated from other U.S. populations of gray wolves and difference in control of exploitation, conservation status, and regulatory mechanisms justifies discreteness between U.S. and Canadian wolf populations. Therefore, the WGL DPS meets the criterion for discreteness under the DPS policy.

Analysis for Significance

If we determine that a population segment is discrete, we next consider available scientific evidence of its significance to the taxon to which it belongs. Our DPS policy states that this consideration may include, but is not limited to, the following: (1) Persistence of the discrete population segment in an ecological setting unusual or unique for the taxon; (2) evidence that loss of the discrete population segment would result in a significant gap in the range of the taxon; (3) evidence that the discrete population segment represents the only surviving natural occurrence of a taxon that may be more abundant elsewhere as an introduced population outside its historic range; and/or (4) evidence that the discrete population segment differs markedly from other populations of the species in its genetic characteristics. Factor 2 applies to the WGL DPS and is included in our analysis for significance. Factors 1, 3, and 4 do not apply to the WGL DPS and thus are not included in our analysis for significance.

Significant Gap in the Range of the Taxon

—Gray wolves once lived throughout most of North America. Gray wolves have been extirpated from most of the southern portions of their historical North American range. The successful restoration of a viable gray wolf metapopulation (a regional group of connected populations of a species) to large parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan has filled a significant gap in the holarctic range of gray wolves in the United States, and it provides an important extension of the range of gray wolves in North America. The loss of the WGL gray wolf population would, therefore, represent a significant gap in the species' holarctic range in that the WGL wolf population is the only gray wolf population in the conterminous States east of the Rocky Mountains and currently holds about 70 percent of North American gray wolves known to occur south of Canada.

Conclusion

—Based on our analysis of the best available scientific information, the WGL DPS is significant to the taxon to which it belongs because its loss would result in a significant gap in the range of the taxon. Therefore, the WGL DPS meets the criterion for significance under the DPS policy.

Discrete Vertebrate Population Segment Conclusion

Based on our review of the best available scientific data, we determine that the WGL DPS is discrete from other gray wolf populations as a result of physical separation from other gray wolf populations in the United States and the international border with Canada. The DPS is significant to the taxon to which it belongs because it contains a wolf metapopulation that fills a large gap in the historical range of the taxon in the conterminous States. Therefore, we have determined that this population segment of wolves satisfies the discreteness and significance criteria required for a DPS. The evaluation of the appropriate conservation status for the WGL DPS is found below.

Delineating the Boundaries of the WGL Gray Wolf DPS

In contrast to a species or a subspecies, a DPS is a biological population that is delineated by a boundary that is based on something other than established taxonomic distinctions. Therefore, the starting point for delineating a DPS is the biological population or metapopulation, and a geographical delineation of the DPS must reasonably represent the population or metapopulation and its biological characteristics and recovery needs.

To delineate the boundary of the WGL DPS, we considered the current distribution of wolves in the Midwest and the characteristic movements of those wolves and of wolves elsewhere. We examined the best available

scientific data on long-distance movements, including long-distance movements followed by return movements to the vicinity of the natal pack. We concluded that wolf behavior and the nature of wolf populations require that we include within the area of the DPS some subset of known long-distance movement locations. However, as explained below, wolf biology and common sense argue against including all known or potential long-distance movements within the DPS's boundaries.

The analysis detailed below resulted in the boundaries of the WGL DPS that are shown in figure 1. This DPS has been delineated to include the core recovered wolf metapopulation plus a wolf movement zone around the core wolf metapopulation. This geographic delineation is not intended to include all areas to which wolves have moved from the Great Lakes population. Rather, it includes the area currently occupied by wolf packs in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan; the nearby areas in these States in which wolf packs may become established in the foreseeable future; and a surrounding area into which Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan wolves occasionally move but where persistent packs are not expected to be established because suitable habitat is rare and exists only as small patches. The area surrounding the core wolf populations includes the locations of most known dispersers from the core populations, especially the shorter and medium-distance movements from which wolves are most likely to return to the core areas and contribute to the wolf population. Therefore, the DPS encompasses the current range of the population, which is considered to be viable, including the primary range and the peripheral range.

The WGL areas that are regularly occupied by wolf packs are well documented in Minnesota (Erb and Benson 2004, p. 12, fig. 3; Erb and Don Carlos 2009, pp. 57-60), Wisconsin (Wydeven

et al.

2006, p. 33, fig. 1; Wydeven

et al.

2009c, pp. 93-98), and the UP of Michigan (Huntzinger

et al.

2005, pp. 25-27, figs. 4-6; Beyer

et al.

2009, pp. 73-75). Wolves have successfully colonized most, perhaps all, suitable habitat in Minnesota. Minnesota data from the winter of 2007-08 indicate that wolf numbers and density have stabilized since 1997-98, and there was no expansion of occupied range in the State (Erb 2008, pp. 5-7). Wisconsin wolves now occupy most habitat areas believed to have a high probability of wolf occurrence except for some areas of northeastern Wisconsin, and the State's wolf population continues to annually increase in numbers and, to a lesser degree, in area (Wydeven and Wiedenhoeft 2009, p. 2). The UP of Michigan has wolf packs throughout the peninsula. In the last 22 years, the wolf population in the UP has grown every year except 1997 and 2010 (Roell 2010, pers. comm.). Over the past 5 years, the average annual growth has been about 7 percent. While the population trend continues to increase, the rate of increase has slowed, consistent with any population expanding into and then filling available habitat. The population may continue to grow or remain steady; however, a small or even negative growth rate may occur any year and should be considered a natural fluctuation seen in any wildlife population.

When delineating the WGL DPS, we had to consider the high degree of mobility shown by wolves. The dispersal of wolves from their natal packs and territories is a normal and important behavioral attribute of the species that facilitates the formation of new packs, the occupancy of vacant territories, and the expansion of occupied range by the “colonization” of vacant habitat. Data on wolf dispersal rates from numerous North American studies (summarized in Fuller

et al.

2003, p. 179, Table. 6.6; Boyd and Pletscher 1999, p. 1102, Table 6) show dispersal rates of 13 to 48 percent of the individuals in a pack. Sometimes the movements are temporary, and the wolf returns to a location in or near its natal territory. In some cases, a wolf may continue its movement for scores or even hundreds of miles until it locates suitable habitat, where it may establish a territory or join an existing pack. In other cases, a wolf is found dead at a distance from its original territory, leaving unanswered the questions of how far it would have gone and whether it eventually would have returned to its natal area or population.

Minnesota

—The current record for a documented movement by a wolf in North America is held by a Minnesota wolf that moved a minimum (that is, the straight-line distance from known starting point to most distant point) of at least 550 mi (886 km) northwest into Saskatchewan (Fritts 1983, pp. 166-167). Nineteen other primarily Minnesota movements summarized by Mech (in litt. 2005) averaged 154 mi (248 km). Their minimum distance of travel ranged from 32 to 532 mi (53-886 km) with the minimum dispersal distance shown by known returning wolves ranging from 54 mi (90 km) to 307 mi (494 km).

Wisconsin

—In 2004, a wolf tagged in Michigan was killed by a vehicle in Rusk County in northwestern Wisconsin, 295 mi (475 km) west of his original capture location in the eastern UP (Wydeven

et al.

2005b, p. 4). A north-central Wisconsin yearling female wolf traveled a similar distance (298 mi, 480 km) to the Rainy Lake region of Ontario during 1988-89 (Wydeven

et al.

1995, p. 149).

Michigan

—Drummer

et al.

(2002, pp. 14-15) reported 10 long-distance dispersal events involving UP wolves. One of these wolves moved to north-central Missouri and another to southeastern Wisconsin, both beyond the core wolf areas in the WGL. The average straight-line distance traveled by those two wolves was 377 mi (608 km), while the average straight-line distance for all 10 of these wolves was 232 mi (373 km). Their straight-line distances ranged from 41 to 468 mi (66 to 753 km).

Illinois and Indiana

—In December 2002, a Marshall County (Illinois) wolf likely dispersed from the Wisconsin wolf population, nearly 200 mi (322 km) to the north (Great Lakes Directory 2003). The Randolph County (Indiana) wolf had traveled a minimum distance of at least 428 mi (689 km) to get around Lake Michigan from its central Wisconsin birthplace; it likely traveled much farther than that unless it went through the city or suburbs of Chicago (Wydeven

et al.

2004, pp. 10-11; Treves

et al.

2009, p. 194). The Pike County (Illinois) wolf that was shot in late 2005 was about 300 mi (180 km) from the nearest wolf packs in central Wisconsin.

North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska

—Licht and Fritts (1994, p. 77) tabulated seven wolves found dead in North Dakota and South Dakota from 1981 through 1992 that are believed to have originated from Minnesota, based on skull morphometrics. Although none of these wolves were marked or radio-tracked, making it impossible to determine the point of initiation of their journey, a minimum travel distance for the seven can be determined from the nearest wolf breeding range in Minnesota. For the seven, the average distance to the nearest wolf breeding range was 160 mi (257 km) and ranged from 29 to 329 mi (46 to 530 km). One of these seven wolves moved west of the Missouri River before it died.

Genetic analysis of a wolf killed in Harding County, in extreme northwestern South Dakota, in 2001 indicated that it originated from the Minnesota-Wisconsin-Michigan wolf populations (Fain in litt. 2006). The straight-line travel distance to the

nearest Minnesota wolf pack is nearly 400 mi (644 km).

The wolf from the Greater Yellowstone area that was killed by a vehicle on Interstate 90 near Sturgis, South Dakota, in March of 2006 traveled a minimum straight-line distance of about 270 mi (435 km) from the nearest known Greater Yellowstone pack before it died (USFWS

et al.

2006, in USFWS Program Report, Figure 1).

A large canid was shot by a Boyd County (Nebraska) rancher in late 1994 or early 1995, likely after crossing the frozen Missouri River from South Dakota (Anschutz in litt. 2006, Jobman in litt. 1995). It was determined to be a wolf that originated from the Great Lakes wolf populations (Fain in litt. 2006), whose nearest pack would have been about 300 mi (480 km) away. A wolf illegally killed near Spalding, Nebraska, in December of 2002 also originated from the Minnesota-Wisconsin-Michigan wolf population, as determined by genetic analysis (Anschutz in litt. 2003, Fain in litt. 2006). The nearest Minnesota wolf pack is nearly 350 mi (563 km) from this location.

Other notable extra-territorial movements

—The extra-territorial movements of several wolves were radio-tracked in sufficient detail to provide insight into their actual travel routes and total travel distances for each trek, rather than only documenting straight-line distance from beginning to end-point. Merrill and Mech (2000, pp. 429-431) reported on four such Minnesota wolves with documented travel distances ranging from 305 to 2,640 mi (490 to 4,251 km) and an average travel route length of 988 mi (1,590 km). Wydeven (1994, pp. 20-22) described a Wisconsin wolf that moved from northwestern Wisconsin to the northern suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota, for 2 weeks (apparently not seen or reported to authorities by the local residents), then moved back to north-central Wisconsin. The total travel distance was 278 mi (447 km) from her natal pack into Minnesota and on to the north-central Wisconsin location where she settled down.

While investigating the origins of Scandinavian wolf populations, Linnell

et al.

(2005, p. 387) compiled wolf dispersal data from 21 published studies, including many cited separately here. Twenty-two of 298 compiled dispersals (7.4 percent) were more than 300 km (186 mi). Eleven dispersals (3.7 percent) were more than 500 km (311 mi). Because of the likelihood that many long-distance dispersers are never reported, they conclude that the proportion of long-distance dispersers is probably severely underestimated. Perhaps the longest documented wolf movement is that of a Scandinavian wolf that covered more than 678 miles (1,092 km) (Wabakken

et al.

2007).

From these extra-territorial movement records, we conclude that wolf movements of more than 200 mi (320 km) straight-line distance have been documented on numerous occasions, while shorter distance movements are more frequent. Movements of 300 mi (480 km) straight-line distance or more are less common, but include one Minnesota wolf that journeyed a straight-line distance of 300 mi (480 km) and a known minimum-travel distance of 2,640 mi (4,251 km) before it reversed direction, as determined by its satellite-tracked collar. This wolf ultimately returned to a spot only 24 mi (40 km) from its natal territory (Merrill and Mech 2000, p. 430). Although much longer movements have been documented, including some by midwestern wolves, return movements to the vicinity of natal territories have not been documented for extra-territorial movements beyond 300 mi (480 km).

Based on these extra-territorial movement data, we conclude that affiliation with the midwestern wolf population is diminished and essentially lost when dispersal takes a Midwest wolf a distance of 250 to 300 mi (400 to 480 km) beyond the outer edge of the areas that are continuously occupied by wolf packs. Although some WGL wolves will move beyond this distance, available data indicate that longer distance dispersers are unlikely to return to their natal population. Therefore, they have lost their functional connection with, and potential conservation value to, the WGL wolf population.

Wolves moving substantial distances outward from the core areas of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan will encounter landscape features that are at least partial barriers to further wolf movement and that may, if crossed, impede attempts of wolves to return toward the WGL core areas. If such partial barriers are in a location that has separate utility in delineating the biological extent of a wolf population, they can and should be used to delineate the DPS boundary. Such landscape features are the Missouri River in North Dakota and downstream to Omaha, Nebraska, and Interstate Highway 80 from Omaha eastward through Illinois, Indiana, and into Ohio, ending where this highway crosses the Maumee River in Toledo, Ohio. We do not believe these are absolute barriers to wolf movement.

There is evidence that several Minnesota-origin wolves have crossed the Missouri River (Licht and Fritts 1994, pp. 75, 77, Fig. 1 and Table 1; Anschutz in litt. 2003, 2006) and some Midwest wolves have crossed interstate highways (Merrill and Mech 2000, p. 430). There is also evidence that some wolves are hesitant to cross highways (Whittington

et al.

2004, pp. 7, 9; Wydeven

et al.

2005b, p. 5; but see Blanco

et al.

2005, pp. 315-316, 319-320 and Kohn

et al.

2000, p. 22). Interstate highways and smaller roads are a known mortality factor for wolves and, therefore, pose a partial barrier to wolf movements (Blanco

et al.

2005, p. 320). The death of a NRM wolf near Sturgis in western South Dakota (Fain in litt. 2006) suggests that the area of the Dakotas west of the Missouri River may be traversed by a small number of wolves coming from both the NRM and WGL wolf populations, as well as wolves from Canada (Licht and Fritts 1994, pp. 75-77). Wolves in this area cannot be assumed to belong to the WGL wolf population, supporting our belief that the boundary should not be designed to include the locations of all known dispersers.

Recovery of Western Great Lakes Wolves

Recovery Criteria

Recovery plans are intended to provide guidance to the Service, States, and other partners on methods of minimizing threats to listed species and on criteria that may be used to determine when recovery is achieved. They are not regulatory documents and cannot substitute for the determinations and promulgation of regulations required under section 4(a)(1) of the Act. These documents include, among other elements required under section 4(f) of the Act, criteria for determining when a species can be delisted. There are many paths to accomplishing recovery of a species; in fact, recovery of a species is a dynamic process requiring adaptive management that may, or may not, strictly adhere to the guidance provided in a recovery plan.

We use recovery criteria in concert with evidence that threats have been minimized sufficiently and populations have achieved long-term viability to judge when a species can be reclassified from endangered to threatened or delisted. Recovery plans, including recovery criteria, are subject to change based upon new information and are revised accordingly and when practicable. In a similar sense, implementation of planned actions is subject to changing information and

availability of resources. We have taken these considerations into account in the following discussion.

The 1978 Recovery Plan (hereafter Recovery Plan) and the 1992 Revised Recovery Plan for the Eastern Timber Wolf (hereafter Revised Recovery Plan) contain the same two recovery criteria. The first recovery criterion states that the survival of the wolf in Minnesota must be assured. We, and the Eastern Timber Wolf Recovery Team (Peterson in litt. 1997, 1998, 1999a, 1999b), have concluded that this recovery criterion remains valid. It addresses a need for reasonable assurances that future State, tribal, and Federal wolf management and protection will maintain a viable recovered population of wolves within the borders of Minnesota for the foreseeable future.

Although the recovery criteria identified in the Recovery Plan predate identification of the conservation biology principles of representation (conserving the genetic diversity of a taxon), resilience (the ability to withstand demographic and environmental variation), and redundancy (sufficient populations to provide a margin of safety), those principles were incorporated into the recovery criteria. Maintenance of the Minnesota wolf population is vital in terms of representation and resilience, because the remaining genetic diversity of gray wolves in the eastern United States was carried by the several hundred wolves that survived in Minnesota into the early 1970s. The Recovery Team insisted that the remnant Minnesota wolf population be maintained and protected to achieve wolf recovery in the eastern United States. The successful growth of the remnant Minnesota population has maintained and maximized the representation of that genetic diversity among wolves in the WGL.

Although the Revised Recovery Plan did not establish a specific numerical criterion for the Minnesota wolf population, it did identify, for planning purposes only, a population goal of 1,251-1,400 animals for that Minnesota population (USFWS 1992, p. 28). A population of this size would increase the likelihood of maintaining its genetic diversity over the long term. This large Minnesota wolf population also provides resiliency to reduce the adverse impacts of unpredictable demographic and environmental events. Furthermore, the Revised Recovery Plan specifies a wolf population that is spread across about 40 percent of Minnesota (Zones 1 through 4) (USFWS 1992, p. 28), adding a geographic component to the resiliency of the Minnesota wolf population.

The second recovery criterion in the Recovery Plan states that at least one viable wolf population should be reestablished within the historical range of the eastern timber wolf outside of Minnesota and Isle Royale, Michigan (USFWS 1992, pp. 24-26). The reestablished population enhances both the resiliency and redundancy of the WGL metapopulation.

The Recovery Plan provides two options for reestablishing this second population. If it is an isolated population, that is, located more than 100 mi (160 km) from the Minnesota wolf population, the second population should consist of at least 200 wolves for at least 5 years, based upon late-winter population estimates, to be considered viable. Late-winter estimates are made at a time when most winter mortality has already occurred and before the birth of pups, thus, the count is made at the annual low point of the population. Alternatively, if the second population is located within 100 mi (160 km) of a self-sustaining wolf population (for example, the Minnesota wolf population), it should be maintained at a minimum of 100 wolves for at least 5 years, based on late-winter population estimates, to be considered viable. A nearby second population would be considered viable at a smaller size because it would be geographically close enough to exchange wolves with the Minnesota population (that is, they would function as a metapopulation), thereby bolstering the smaller second population both genetically and numerically.

The original Recovery Plan did not specify where in the eastern United States the second population should be reestablished. Therefore, the second population could have been established anywhere within the triangular Minnesota-Maine-Florida area covered by the Recovery Plan and the Revised Recovery Plan, except on Isle Royale (Michigan) or within Minnesota. The Revised Recovery Plan identified potential gray wolf reestablishment areas in northern Wisconsin, the UP of Michigan, the Adirondack Forest Preserve of New York, a small area in eastern Maine, and a larger area of northwestern Maine and adjacent northern New Hampshire (USFWS 1992, pp. 56-58). Neither the 1978 nor the 1992 recovery criteria suggest that the restoration of the gray wolf throughout all or most of what was thought to be its historical range in the eastern United States, or to all of these potential reestablishment areas, is necessary to achieve recovery under the Act.

In 1998, the Eastern Timber Wolf Recovery Team clarified the application of the recovery criterion for the second population to the wolf population that had developed in northern Wisconsin and the adjacent UP of Michigan. This second population is less than 100 mi (160 km) from the Minnesota wolf population. The Recovery Team recommended that the numerical recovery criterion for the Wisconsin-Michigan population be considered met when consecutive late-winter wolf surveys document that the population equals or exceeds 100 wolves (excluding Isle Royale wolves) for the 5 consecutive years between the first and last surveys (Peterson in litt. 1998).

Recovery Trends for Wolves in the Western Great Lakes Region

Minnesota Recovery

During the pre-1965 period of wolf bounties and legal public trapping, wolves persisted in the remote northeastern portion of Minnesota but were eliminated from the rest of the State. Estimated numbers of Minnesota wolves before their listing under the Act in 1974 include 450 to 700 wolves in 1950-53 (Fuller

et al.

1992, p. 43, based on data in Stenlund 1955, p. 19), 350 to 700 wolves in 1963 (Cahalane 1964, p. 10), 750 wolves in 1970 (Leirfallom 1970, p. 11), 736 to 950 wolves in 1971-72 (Fuller

et al.

1992, p. 44), and 500 to 1,000 wolves in 1973 (Mech and Rausch 1975, p. 85). Although these estimates were based on different methodologies and are not directly comparable, each puts the prelisting abundance of wolves in Minnesota at 1,000 or less. This was the only significant wolf population in the United States outside Alaska during those time periods.

After the gray wolf was listed as endangered under the Act in 1974, the Minnesota population estimates increased (see table 1 below). Mech estimated the population to be 1,000 to 1,200 wolves in 1976 (USFWS 1978, pp. 4, 50-52), and Berg and Kuehn (1982, p. 11) estimated that there were 1,235 wolves in 138 packs in the winter of 1978-79. In 1988-89, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR) repeated the 1978-79 survey and also used a second method to estimate wolf numbers in Minnesota. The resulting independent estimates were 1,500 and 1,750 wolves in at least 233 packs; the lower number was derived by a method comparable to the 1978-79 survey (Fuller

et al.

1992, pp. 50-51).

During the winter of 1997-98, the MN DNR repeated a statewide wolf

population and distribution survey, using methods similar to those of the two previous surveys. Field staff of Federal, State, tribal, and county land management agencies and wood products companies were queried to identify occupied wolf range in Minnesota. Data from 5 concurrent radio telemetry studies tracking 36 packs, representative of the entire Minnesota wolf range, were used to determine average pack size and territory area. Those figures were then used to calculate a statewide estimate of wolf and pack numbers in the occupied range, with single (nonpack) wolves factored into the estimate (Berg and Benson 1999, pp. 1-2).

Table 1—Minimum Winter Wolf Populations in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan (Excluding Isle Royale) From 1976 Through 2010.

[Note That There are Several Years Between the First Three Estimates. Minnesota Does Not Conduct Annual Surveys.]

Year

Number of wolves

Minnesota

Wisconsin

Michigan

Wisconsin and Michigan total

1976

1,000-1,200

1978-79

1,235

1988-89

1,500-1,750

31

3

34

1989-90

34

10

44

1990-91

40

17

57

1991-92

45

21

66

1992-93

40

30

70

1993-94

57

57

114

1994-95

83

80

163

1995-96

99

116

215

1996-97

148

113

261

1997-98

2,445

180

139

319

1998-99

205

169

374

1999-2000

248

216

464

2000-01

257

249

506

2001-02

327

278

604

2002-03

335

321

656

2003-04

3,020

373

360

733

2004-05

435

405

840

2005-06

467

434

899

2006-07

546

509

1,055

2007-08

2,921

549

520

1,069

2008-09

637

577

1,214

2009-10

704

557

1,247

2010-11

782

687

1,469

The 1997-98 survey concluded that approximately 2,445 wolves existed in about 385 packs in Minnesota during that winter period (90 percent confidence interval from 1,995 to 2,905 wolves) (Berg and Benson 1999, p. 4). This figure indicated the continued growth of the Minnesota wolf population at an average rate of about 3.7 percent annually from 1970 through 1997-98. Between 1979 and 1989 the annual growth rate was approximately 3 percent, and it increased to between 4 and 5 percent in the next decade (Berg and Benson 1999, p. 5; Fuller

et al.

1992, p. 51). As of the 1998 survey, the number of Minnesota wolves had reached approximately twice the number specified in the recovery planning goal for Minnesota (USFWS 1992, p. 28).

Minnesota DNR conducted another survey of the State's wolf population and range during the winter of 2003-04, again using methodology similar to the previous surveys. That survey concluded that an estimated 3,020 wolves in 485 packs occurred in Minnesota (90 percent confidence interval for this estimate is 2,301 to 3,708 wolves) (Erb and Benson 2004, pp. 7, 9). The MN DNR conducted its most recent survey of wolf population and range during the winter of 2007-08. That survey concluded that an estimated 2,921 wolves in 503 packs occurred in Minnesota (90 percent confidence interval for this estimate is 2,192 to 3,525 wolves). The results of the past three surveys suggest that the wolf population has been numerically stable over the past 10 or more years (Erb 2008, p. 6).

As wolves increased in abundance in Minnesota, they also expanded their distribution. During 1948-53, the primary wolf range was estimated at 11,954 sq mi (31,080 sq km) (Stenlund 1955, p. 19). A 1970 questionnaire survey in Minnesota resulted in an estimated wolf range of 14,769 sq mi (38,400 sq km) (calculated by Fuller

et al.

1992, p. 43, from Leirfallom 1970). Fuller

et al.

(1992, p. 44), using data from Berg and Kuehn (1982), estimated that Minnesota primary wolf range encompassed 14,038 sq mi (36,500 sq km) during the winter of 1978-79. By 1982-83, pairs or breeding packs of wolves were estimated to occupy an area of 22,000 sq mi (57,050 sq km) in northern Minnesota (Mech

et al.

1988, p. 86). That study also identified an additional 15,577 sq mi (40,500 sq km) of peripheral range, where habitat appeared suitable but no wolves or only lone wolves existed. The 1988-89 study produced an estimate of 23,165 sq mi (60,200 sq km) as the contiguous wolf range at that time in Minnesota (Fuller

et al.

1992, pp. 48-49; Berg and Benson 1999, pp. 3, 5), an increase of 65 percent over the primary range calculated for 1978-79.

The 1997-98 study concluded that the contiguous wolf range had expanded to 33,971 sq mi (88,325 sq km), a 47 percent increase in 9 years (Berg and Benson 1999, p. 5). By that time the Minnesota wolf population was using most of the available primary and peripheral range identified by Mech

et al.

(1988, p. 86). The wolf population in Minnesota had increased in abundance

and distribution to the point that its contiguous range covered approximately 40 percent of the State during 1997-98. In contrast, the 2003-04 survey failed to show a continuing expansion of wolf range in Minnesota, and any actual increase in wolf numbers since 1997-98 was attributed to increased wolf density within a stabilized range (Erb and Benson 2004, p. 7). The results of the 2007-08 survey also indicated that wolf range in Minnesota remained “essentially unchanged” since 2004 (Erb 2008, not paginated).

Although the Minnesota DNR does not conduct a formal wolf population survey annually, it includes the species in its annual carnivore track survey. This survey, standardized and operational since 1994, provides an annual index of abundance for several species of large carnivores by counting their tracks along 20-mile (32-km) long standardized survey routes in northern Minnesota. In 2009, wolves were detected on 71 percent of the 58 routes surveyed, and the resulting indices of abundance and distribution were not appreciably different from recent years (Erb 2009, not paginated).

Summary for Minnesota

The Minnesota wolf population has increased from an estimated 1,000 individuals in 1976 to nearly 3,000 today, and the estimated wolf range in the State has expanded by approximately 225 percent (from approximately 15,000 sq mi (38,850 sq km) to approximately 34,000 sq mi (88,060 sq km)) since 1970. Over the past 10-12 years, the population size and range have remained stable, as most of the primary and peripheral habitat has been occupied. Based on the current abundance and distribution of the Minnesota wolf population, we believe its continued survival is ensured, and it achieves the first recovery criterion of the Revised Recovery Plan.

Wisconsin Recovery

Wolves were considered to have been extirpated from Wisconsin by 1960. No formal attempts were made to monitor the State's wolf population from 1960 through 1978. Although individual wolves and an occasional wolf pair were reported from 1960 through 1975, (Thiel 1978, Thiel 1993), there was no documentation of wolf reproduction occurring in Wisconsin, and the wolves that were reported may have been dispersing animals from Minnesota.

Wolves are believed to have reestablished breeding packs in Wisconsin in the winter of 1975-76. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WI DNR) began wolf population monitoring in 1979-80, estimating a statewide population of 25 wolves at that time (Wydeven and Wiedenhoeft 2000, pp. 151, 159; Wydeven

et al.

2009c, pp. 93-97). This population remained relatively stable for several years, and then declined to approximately 14 to 19 wolves in the mid-1980s. In the late 1980s, the Wisconsin wolf population began an increase that has continued into 2010, when 690 wolves were counted (Wydeven

et al.

2010, Figure 3).

Since 1979, WI DNR has intensively surveyed its wolf population on an annual basis using a combination of aerial, ground, and satellite radio telemetry complemented by snow tracking and wolf sign surveys (Wydeven

et al.

2006a, pp. 4-5; Wydeven

et al.

2009c, pp. 90-91). Wolves are trapped from May through September and fitted with radio collars, with a goal of having at least one radio-collared wolf in approximately half of the wolf packs in Wisconsin. Aerial locations are obtained from each functioning radio-collar about once per week, and pack territories are estimated and mapped from the movements of the individuals who exhibit localized patterns. From December through March, the pilots make special efforts to visually locate and count the individual wolves in each radio-tracked pack.

Snow tracking is used to supplement the information gained from aerial sightings and to provide pack size estimates for packs lacking a radio-collared wolf. Tracking is done by assigning survey blocks to trained trackers, who then drive snow-covered roads in their blocks and follow all wolf tracks they encounter. Snowmobiles are used to locate wolf tracks in more remote areas with few roads. The results of the aerial and ground surveys are carefully compared to properly separate packs and to avoid overcounting (Wydeven

et al.

2006a, pp. 4-5). The estimated number of wolves in each pack is based on the aerial and ground observations made of the individual wolves in each pack over the winter.

Because the monitoring methods focus on wolf packs, lone wolves are likely undercounted in Wisconsin. As a result, the annual population estimates are probably slight underestimates of the actual wolf population within the State during the late-winter period. Fuller (1989, p. 19) noted that lone wolves are estimated to compose from 2 to 29 percent of the total population in the area. Wisconsin DNR surveys have estimated 2-15 percent of the winter population as loners (Wydeven

et al.

2009c, p. 96). These surveys, however, are focused on heavily forested portions of northern and central Wisconsin; therefore, dispersing wolves traveling in other portions of the State are less likely to be detected, and often such wolves are only documented after vehicle collisions or accidental shootings. Broader use of trail cameras by members of the public is improving the WI DNR's ability to detect lone wolves across the State.

As previously stated, population estimates are made at the low point of the annual wolf population cycle. Thus, Wisconsin wolf population estimates are conservative in two respects. They undercount lone wolves, and the count is made at the annual low point of the population. This methodology is consistent with the recovery criteria established in the Revised Recovery Plan, which established numerical criteria to be measured with data obtained by late-winter surveys. Based on these considerations, an estimated 690 to 733 wolves in 181 packs, including 35 wolves on Native American reservations, were in Wisconsin in early 2010, representing an 8 percent increase from 2009 (Wydeven

et al.

2010, pp. 12-13).

In the winter of 1994-95, wolves were first documented in Jackson County, Wisconsin, well to the south of the area occupied by other Wisconsin wolf packs in the northern part of the State (Thiel

et al

2009, pp. 109-110). The number of wolves in this central Wisconsin area has dramatically increased since that time. During the winter of 2009-10, there were 100-106 wolves in 25 packs in the central forest wolf range (Zone 2 in the Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan; Wydeven

et al.

2010, p. 5) and an additional 46 to 48 wolves in 12 or 13 packs in the marginal habitat in Zone 3, located between Zone 1 (northern forest wolf range) and Zones 2 and 4 (Wydeven

et al.

2010, p. 5).

During the winter of 2004-05, 11 to 13 wolves were believed to be primarily occupying Native American reservation lands in Wisconsin (Wydeven in litt. 2005); this increased to 16 to 17 in 2005-06, 17 to 19 in 2007-08 (Wydeven and Wiedenhoeft 2008, Summary), approximately 27 in 2008-2009 (Wydeven and Wiedenhoeft 2008, p. 1), and approximately 35 in 2009-10 (Wydeven

et al.

2010, p. 1). The 2009-10 survey consisted of 3 packs totaling 10-11 wolves on the Bad River Chippewa Reservation and a pack of 2 wolves on the Lac Courtes Oreilles Chippewa Reservation, both in northwestern Wisconsin. There also were two packs of five wolves each on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation in north-central Wisconsin. A pack of four wolves and three pairs occurred on the

Menominee Reservation and a three-wolf pack occurred on the Stockbridge Reservation, both in northeastern Wisconsin (Wydeven

et al.

2010, Table 6). A pack of four to five wolves spent time on portions of the Red Cliff Chippewa Reservation along the Lake Superior shoreline. Wolf packs also used scattered lands of the St. Croix Chippewa in northwest Wisconsin, the Ho Chunk Nation in central Wisconsin, and Potawatomi in northeast Wisconsin. The tribal land of the Ho-Chunk, St. Croix Chippewa, and Potawatomi are composed mostly of scattered parcels of land, and are not likely to provide significant amounts of wolf habitat. About 90 percent of packs in northern Wisconsin Zone 1, and northern portions of Zone 3 are located in ceded territory where Chippewa Bands have retained hunting and gathering rights.

In 2002, wolf numbers in Wisconsin alone surpassed the 1992 Revised Recovery Plan criterion for a second population within 100 miles of the Minnesota population (100 wolves for a minimum of 5 consecutive years (USFWS 1992, p. 4)). Furthermore, in 2004, Wisconsin wolf numbers exceeded the 1992 recovery criterion of 200 animals for 6 successive late-winter surveys for an isolated wolf population (USFWS 1992, p. 4). Wisconsin population estimates for 1985 to 2010 increased from 15 to 690 wolves (see table 1 above) and from 4 to 181 packs (Wydeven

et al.

2010, figure 3). This represents an annual population increase of 21 percent through 2000, and an average annual increase of 11 percent annually for the period 2004-2010. The slower rates of increase since 2000 are an indication that the State's wolf population growth and geographic expansion are beginning to level off.

Michigan Recovery

Except for Isle Royale, wolves were extirpated from Michigan as a reproducing species long before they were listed as endangered under the Act in 1974. Prior to 1989, the last known breeding population of wild Michigan wolves outside Isle Royale occurred in the mid-1950s. However, as wolves began to reoccupy northern Wisconsin, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MI DNR) began noting single wolves at various locations in the UP of Michigan. Wolf recovery in Michigan began with the documentation of three wolves traveling together and making territorial marks in the central UP during the fall of 1988; and the subsequent birth of pups in this territory during spring 1989 (Beyer

et al.

2009, p. 73). Since that time, wolf packs have spread throughout the UP, with immigration occurring from Wisconsin on the west and possibly from Ontario on the east. Wolves now are found in every county of the UP, with the possible exception of Keweenaw County (Huntzinger

et al

2005, p. 6; Roell 2009, pers. comm.).

The MI DNR annually monitors the wolf population in the UP by conducting a winter survey. Roads and trails are searched intensively and extensively for wolf tracks and other wolf sign using trucks and snowmobiles (Potvin

et al.

2005). Complete surveys conducted from 1999 to 2006 provided an opportunity to evaluate multiple sampling approaches (MI DNR 2008). Based on these evaluations, it was determined that a geographically stratified sampling protocol produced unbiased, precise estimates of wolf abundance (Potvin

et al.

2005; Drummer, unpublished data). The sampling protocol implemented in 2007 allows trackers to spend more time in smaller areas (MI DNR 2008).

The UP is divided into 21 survey units from which a stratified random sample is drawn, covering roughly 50 percent of the UP every year (MI DNR 2008). Pack locations are derived from previous surveys, citizen reports, and extensive ground and aerial tracking of radio-collared wolves. During the winter of 2009-10, the UP had 557 wolves in 109 resident packs (MI DNR in litt. 2010, Table 1). Surveys along the border of adjacent survey units are coordinated to avoid double counting of wolves and packs occupying those border areas. In areas with a high density of wolves, ground surveys by four to six surveyors with concurrent aerial tracking are used to accurately delineate territories of adjacent packs and count their members (Beyer

et al.

2004, pp. 2-3; Huntzinger

et al.

2005, pp. 3-6; Potvin

et al.

2005, p. 1661). As with Wisconsin, the Michigan surveys likely miss lone wolves, thus underestimating the actual population.

Based on annual surveys in late winter, estimates of wolves in the UP increased from 57 wolves in 1994 to 557 in late winter 2009-10 (see table 1 above). Over the last 10 years, the annualized rate of increase has been about 12 percent (MI DNR in litt. 2010, table 1). This rate has varied from year to year, but there appear to be two distinct phases of population growth, with relatively rapid growth (25.8 percent average) from 1995 through 2000 and slower growth (10.1 percent average) from 2001 through 2010. In 2005, the number of wolves in the Michigan population alone surpassed the recovery criterion for an isolated wolf population of 200 animals for 6 successive late-winter surveys, as specified in the Revised Recovery Plan (USFWS 1992, pp. 24-26).

To date, no wolf packs are known to be primarily using tribal-owned lands in Michigan (Roell 2011, pers. comm.). Native American tribes in the UP of Michigan own small, scattered parcels of land relative to the size of wolf pack territories. Thus, no one tribal property would likely support a wolf pack. However, as wolves occur in all counties in the UP and are wide-ranging, tribal land is likely used periodically by wolves.

In October 2004, a coyote trapper mistakenly captured and killed a wolf in Presque Isle County in the northern Lower Peninsula (LP) of Michigan. This was the first verification of a wolf in the northern LP in at least 65 years (Roell

et al.

2010, p. 4). This wolf had been trapped and radio-collared by the MI DNR the previous year (2003) while it was a member of an eastern UP pack. Since 2004, Michigan has surveyed the northern LP to determine whether wolves had successfully colonized the area. From 2005 through 2007, the survey had two components: a prioritized area search and a targeted area search based on citizen reports of wolves or wolf sign. USDA-Wildlife Services, Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians, and Central Michigan University worked cooperatively on the surveys. Nine units ranging in size from 200-400 sq mi (322-644 sq km) were surveyed; however, no wolf sign was found (Roell

et al.

2010, p. 4). Beginning in 2008, a targeted search approach was used. The MI DNR issued a press release asking citizens to report any wolves or wolf sign; again, no wolves were detected in winters of 2008-10 (Roell

et al.

2009, p. 5; Roell 2010, pers. comm.).

In 2008, the DNR recognized the likelihood that small numbers of wolves would eventually move into the northern LP and form persistent packs (Potvin 2003, pp. 29-30; Gehring and Potter 2005, p. 1242; Beyer

et al.

2006, p. 35), and revised its Wolf Management Plan in part to incorporate provisions for wolf management in the northern LP (MI DNR 2008a, p. 46). In the summer of 2009, video images of single wolves were recorded in two of the three northern LP counties nearest to the UP (Roell

et al.

2010, p. 4). The videos, taken in Emmet County in May 19, 2009, and Presque Isle County in July 27, 2009, may have been of the same animal (Roell 2009, pers. comm.). In 2010, USDA Wildlife Services and MI DNR staff reported a single breeding pair with three pups in Cheboygan County in the northern LP (MI DNR 2010). That 2010 report was based on an

assessment of the physical features of three pups that were captured and handled, observations of adult wolf-sized tracks, and remote camera photographs of large wolf-like canids. Subsequent DNA analysis indicated the pups were likely siblings and based on microsatellite genotyping, all three were classified as eastern coyotes rather than some form of Great Lakes wolf. The three pups shared an eastern wolf mtDNA haplotype, which suggests maternal introgression from a female wolf into their pedigree. Wheeldon (unpublished data) considers a likely scenario is that a female wolf bred with a male coyote and their female offspring backcrossed with male coyotes for an undetermined number of generations, culminating in the animals handled.

The wolf population of Isle Royale National Park, Michigan, is not considered to be an important factor in the recovery of wolves in the WGL. The Park population is small and isolated and lacks genetic uniqueness (Wayne

et al.

1991, pp. 47-49). For genetic reasons and constraints on expansion due to the island's small size, this wolf population does not contribute significantly towards meeting numerical recovery criteria; however, long-term research on this wolf population has added a great deal to our knowledge of the species. The wolf population on Isle Royale has ranged from 12 to 50 wolves since 1959, and was 16 wolves in the winter of 2010-2011 (Vucetich and Peterson 2011, p. 3).

Summary for Wisconsin and Michigan

The two-State wolf population, excluding Isle Royale wolves, has exceeded 100 wolves since late-winter 1993-94 and has exceeded 200 wolves since late-winter 1995-96. Therefore, the combined wolf population for Wisconsin and Michigan has exceeded the second recovery criterion of the 1992 Revised Recovery Plan for a nonisolated wolf population, since 1999. Furthermore, the two-State population has exceeded the recovery criterion for an isolated second population since 2001.

Other Areas In and Near the Western Great Lakes DPS

No surveys have been conducted to document the number of wolves present in North Dakota or South Dakota, but an increasing number of wolves has apparently been detected in the eastern portions of these States. The eastern boundaries of North Dakota and South Dakota are approximately 19 and 81 mi (30 and 130 km), respectively, from occupied habitat in Minnesota. Biologists who are familiar with wolves in these States, however, generally agree that the wolves found there are primarily lone dispersers, although there were reports of pups being seen in the Turtle Mountains of North Dakota, in 1994 (Collins in litt. 1998).

Other records include an adult male shot near Devil's Lake, North Dakota, in 2002, another adult male shot in Richland County in extreme southeastern North Dakota in 2003 (Fain in litt. 2006), and a vehicle-killed adult male found near Sturgis, South Dakota, in 2006 (Larson in litt. 2006). In contrast to the other South Dakota wolves of the last 25 years, the animal found near Sturgis was genetically identified as having come from the Greater Yellowstone area (Fain in litt. 2006). Most recently, a wolf was shot in Roberts County, South Dakota, in January 2009 (reportedly running with two or three other wolves) (Prieksat in litt. 2009), and another wolf was found dead in a foothold trap that was set as part of an ongoing USDA Wildlife Service's coyote control operation in southeastern Eddy County, North Dakota (Bicknell in litt. 2009). See

Delineating the Boundaries of the WGL DPS

in this rule for a detailed discussion of movement of wolves.

Wolf dispersal is expected to continue as wolves travel away from the more saturated habitats in the core range into peripheral areas where wolves are extremely sparse or absent. Unless they return to the primary range and join or start a pack there, they are unlikely to contribute to long-term maintenance of WGL wolf populations.

Although it is possible for these dispersers to encounter and mate with a mature wolf outside the primary range, the lack of large expanses of unfragmented habitat make it unlikely that wolf packs will persist in these peripheral areas; lack of contiguous habitat is expected to seriously impede further expansion. The only exception is the northern LP of Michigan, where several studies indicate that a persistent wolf population may develop (Gehring and Potter 2005, p. 1242; Potvin 2003, pp. 29-30), albeit dependent on occasional to frequent immigration of UP wolves. Despite the constraints on further expansion described here, however, current wolf populations in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the UP of Michigan have already greatly exceeded the recovery levels defined in the 1992 Revised Recovery Plan, and maintenance of these numbers is not contingent on recruitment of wolves from areas outside the primary range that has been established for the WGL.

Summary of Wolf Recovery in the Western Great Lakes Region

Wolves in the WGL DPS greatly exceed the recovery criteria (USFWS 1992, pp. 24-26) for (1) a secure wolf population in Minnesota, and (2) a second population outside Minnesota and Isle Royale consisting of 100 wolves for 5 successive years. Based on the criteria set by the Eastern Wolf Recovery Team in 1992 and reaffirmed in 1997 and 1998 (Peterson in litt. 1997, in litt. 1998), the DPS contains sufficient wolf numbers and distribution to ensure their long-term survival within the DPS.

The maintenance and expansion of the Minnesota wolf population has maximized the preservation of the genetic diversity that remained in the WGL DPS when its wolves were first protected in 1974. Furthermore, the Wisconsin-Michigan wolf population has exceeded the numerical recovery criterion even for a completely isolated second population. Therefore, even in the unlikely event that this two-State population was to become totally isolated and wolf immigration from Minnesota and Ontario completely ceased, it would still remain a viable wolf population for the foreseeable future, as defined by the Revised Recovery Plan (USFWS 1992, pp. 25-26). Finally, each of the wolf populations in Wisconsin and Michigan has exceeded 200 animals for 11 and 10 years, respectively, so if either were somehow to become isolated, they would remain viable, and each State has committed to manage its wolf population at or above viable population levels. The wolf's numeric and distributional recovery criteria in the WGL have been met.

Have the historical wolves of the western great lakes region been restored?

Leonard and Wayne (2008, p. 3) have stated that Great Lakes wolves have not been restored based on absence of certain historical mtDNA haplotypes from the current population, an estimated historical population size far greater than the current population size, and the admixture (similar to hybridization, but does not imply the generation in which the mixing occurred) of what they have identified as coyote and western wolf haplotypes in the current population.

The spatial representativeness of both the historical and recent samples reported by Leonard and Wayne (2008) has been questioned by Mech (2009). For example, 16 recent but no historical samples from Minnesota were included in the study. Leonard and Wayne (2009)

responded that they did not believe that genetic differences were likely to be pronounced at the geographic scale discussed by Mech and Paul (2008) and Mech (2009).

The current population of wolves in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan is derived from expansion of the remnant population in northeastern Minnesota (Fain

et al.

2010, p. 12), supplemented by western gray wolves (Mech and Frenzel 1971; Mech 2010, p. 135), and in the case of UP Michigan, with possible contributions from wolves from southern Ontario (Fain

et al.

2010, p. 12).

Subsequent studies with larger samples of the current wolf population find, despite acknowledged influence of western gray wolves, the current population is generally representative of the historical population (Fain

et al.

2010, p. 14; Wheeldon

et al.

2010). Koblmüller

et al.

(2009, pp. 10-11) found “comparatively slight” differentiation at autosomal microsatellite DNA loci between historical and current Great Lakes wolves. Wheeldon and White (2009, p. 4) present microsatellite DNA evidence that the hybridization processes noted by Leonard and Wayne (2008) were taking place over a century ago, so that the current population is comparable to the historical population with respect to admixture. They believe hybridization between eastern wolves and western wolves in the western Great Lakes region occurred prior to significant human effects on population size or habitat (Fain

et al.

2010, p. 14). According to Fain

et al.

(2010, p. 14), the current population of wolves in the western Great Lakes “represents an ancient component of the northeast ecosystem and have been established throughout the region for thousands of years.”

The loss of mtDNA haplotypes found in the historical but not the current western Great Lakes wolf population reported by Leonard and Wayne (2008, pp. 2-3), and the loss of allelic diversity (Fain

et al.

2010, p. 11), indicate that a genetic bottleneck occurred when wolves were nearly extirpated from the western Great Lakes region and during the period of slow recovery that immediately followed. Despite these “founder effects” on the genetic composition of the western Great Lakes population, various measures of genetic diversity remain comparable to other wolf populations (Koblmüller

et al.

2009; Fain

et al.

2010, p. 12; Wheeldon

et al.

2010), at least partially owing to contributions from western gray wolves.

Wolves in the WGL region display a healthy level of heterozygosity (Fain

et al.

2010, p. 12), and show no evidence that a genetic bottleneck may have influenced genetic diversity (Koblmüller

et al.

2009, p. 1). Schwartz and Vucetich (2009, p. 2) have stated that “By all accounts, the return of wolves to the Great Lakes region has been successful * * * they are doing superbly—both in terms of population viability and ecological function.” Cronin and Mech (2009, p. 2) state, “It is generally acknowledged that the Great Lakes wolf population is fit, with abundant genetic variation” (Cronin and Mech 2009, p. 2).

When the Service revised the endangered species list in 1978 to include the species

Canis lupus

in the lower 48 States and Mexico, regulatory protections were applied to all gray wolves in the lower 48 States, including all subspecies of gray wolves. That rule classified the Minnesota gray wolf population as a threatened “species” and gray wolves elsewhere in the lower 48 States and Mexico as another “species” with endangered status. This reclassification was undertaken because of uncertainty about the taxonomic validity of some of the previously listed subspecies and because we recognized that wolf populations were historically connected, and that subspecies boundaries were thus malleable.

This listing arrangement [of four subspecies] has not been satisfactory because the taxonomy of wolves is out of date, wolves may wander outside of recognized subspecific boundaries, and some wolves from unlisted subspecies may occur in certain parts of the lower 48 States. In any case, the Service wishes to recognize that the entire species

Canis lupus

is Endangered or Threatened to the south of Canada, and considers that this matter can be handled most conveniently by listing only the species name.” (43 FR 9607).

Since then, except for the short periods during which wolves were delisted, all wolves in the WGL have been protected under that 1978 listing. The recovery of all wolves in the WGL was guided first by the 1978 Recovery Plan and then by the 1992 revised Recovery Plan for the Eastern Timber Wolf. The wolves that were the subject of those documents are the wolves that have been recovered in the WGL. The debate regarding the

C. lupus

nomenclature that was identified in the 1974 and 1978 listings and in the recovery plans continues to date in the scientific community. Regardless of this debate regarding nomenclature, those listings allowed the wolf population that remained in northern Minnesota to flourish and reestablish the population throughout the core range we have today in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the UP of Michigan. It is clear that the existing wolves in the WGL are the descendants of the wolves that were listed in 1978; the wolves that were the subject of the recovery plans; the wolves that have met recovery goals; and the wolves that will be managed by States, Tribes, and other Federal agencies after delisting.

Summary of Comments and Recommendations

In the proposed rule published on May 5, 2011 (76 FR 26806), we requested that all interested parties submit written comments on the proposal by July 5, 2011. We also contacted appropriate Federal and State agencies, scientific experts and organizations, and other interested parties and invited them to comment on the proposal. Newspaper notices inviting general public comment were published in the Bangor Daily News (Maine), Duluth News-Tribune (Minnesota), Lansing State Journal (Michigan), Marquette Mining Journal (Michigan), Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Wisconsin), Minneapolis Star Tribune (Minnesota), Portland Press Herald (Maine), and Wausau Daily Herald (Wisconsin). We held a public hearing on May 18, 2011, in Ashland, Wisconsin, and one on June 8, 2011, in Augusta, Maine. We also held two public information meetings, one in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, on June 14, 2011, and the other in Marquette, Michigan on June 16, 2011.

On August 25, 2011, we published a notice in the

Federal Register

(76 FR 53379) reopening the public comment period on the May 5, 2011, proposal. We reopened the comment period to allow for additional public review and the inclusion of any new information, specifically concerning North American wolf taxonomy. That notice also informed the public that we were considering issuing separate final rules for our final determinations on the proposed delisting of the Western Great Lakes DPS and the proposed determination regarding all or portions of the 29 States considered to be outside the historical range of the gray wolf. The second comment period closed on September 26, 2011.

During the first comment period for the proposed rule, we received 713 unique comments directly addressing the proposed delisting of gray wolves in the WGL DPS. During the second comment period for the proposed rule, we received 124 unique comments directly addressing the proposed delisting of gray wolves in the WGL DPS. These comments included verbal and written comments received at the public hearings. Comments were

submitted by 24 nongovernmental organizations representing a variety of interest groups including preservation, conservation, animal welfare, agriculture or livestock, and sportsmen's organizations. Two Federal agency representatives provided comments, six State agency representatives provided comments, and one elected official provided a comment. Six comments were received from Native American Tribes or tribal government agencies or organizations.

In accordance with our peer review policy published on July 1, 1994 (59 FR 34270), we solicited expert opinion from four knowledgeable individuals with scientific expertise that included familiarity with wolves and their habitat, biological needs, and threats. We received responses from three of the peer reviewers.

We reviewed all comments received from the peer reviewers for substantive issues and new information regarding delisting wolves in the western Great Lakes. The peer reviewers concurred with our conclusion that delisting wolves in the WGL DPS is warranted and provided additional information, clarifications, and suggestions to improve the final rule.

Comments received are addressed in the following summary and incorporated into the final rule as appropriate.

Comments

(1)

Comment:

We received numerous comments, including from peer reviewers, regarding wolf taxonomy, primarily with regards to whether

C. lycaon

should be recognized as a separate species from

C. lupus.

Our Response:

The extensive information submitted during the comment periods and recent publications on the subject and the widely diverging views expressed in the pertinent scientific studies underscore the enduring debate regarding the taxonomy of North American wolves—a debate that may not be resolved for some time (see Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region for a full discussion). Although there is not a significant number of new publications that have become available since we published our proposal in May 2011, the substance of those new publications and the substantive comments we received have led us to reconsider our proposed decision.

Based on a reevaluation of the available scientific information and the evolving and ongoing scientific debate, we reconsidered our position, as expressed in the proposed rule (76 FR 26086), that the gray wolf subspecies

Canis lupus lycaon

should be elevated to the full species

Canis lycaon

and that the population of wolves in the WGL is a mix of the two full species,

Canis lupus

and

Canis lycaon.

While there are varying scientific opinions on the taxonomic history of North American wolves,

Canis lupus

is the species that has been recognized in the WGL for a long time and throughout this technical debate, and there is significant information indicating that continuing to recognize

Canis lupus

as the species in the WGL is appropriate (see Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region). Having reviewed and assessed all of the available scientific information, including, in particular, the comments received on the proposed rule and the information that has become available since the proposed rule was published, we have decided the better conclusion in to retain our previous taxonomic recognition of wolves in the WGL as gray wolves (

Canis lupus

). Therefore, in this final rule we consider all wolves in the WGL DPS to be gray wolves (

Canis lupus

) and are delisting them as such.

(2)

Comment:

We received numerous requests from diverse interest groups and individuals asking that we subdivide our final determination on delisting the WGL DPS from the final determination on the rest of the proposed actions for the eastern United States.

Our Response:

We are separating our determination on the delisting of the Western Great Lakes DPS from the determination on our proposal regarding all or portions of the 29 eastern States we considered to be outside the historical range of the gray wolf. This rule finalizes our determination for the WGL DPS. A subsequent decision will be made for the rest of the eastern United States.

(3)

Comment:

We received numerous comments from diverse interest groups and individuals stating that the Service should treat wolves in the western Great Lakes area as a single, connected population and analyze them as such. Others commented that the wolves that occupy the WGL DPS, regardless of scientific species classification, were and continue to be the same wolves that were protected under the Act over 30 years ago. The wolves that are in the WGL DPS now are what was listed, what met the recovery goals, and what should be delisted.

Our Response:

In this final rule we consider all wolves in the WGL DPS to be members of a single species, the gray wolf (

Canis lupus

) and are delisting them as such. When the Service revised the endangered species list in 1978 to include the species

Canis lupus

in the lower 48 States and Mexico, regulatory protections were applied to all gray wolves in the lower 48 States, including all subspecies of gray wolves. The wolf population in Minnesota was listed separately as a threatened species, while the rest of the lower 48 States and Mexico were listed as endangered. The recovery of all wolves in the WGL was guided first by the 1978 Recovery Plan and then by the 1992 revised Recovery Plan for the Eastern Timber Wolf. The wolves that were the subject of those documents are the wolves that have been recovered in the WGL. The debate regarding the

C. lupus

nomenclature that was identified in the 1974 and 1978 listings and in the recovery plans continues to date in the scientific community. Regardless of this debate regarding nomenclature, those listings allowed the wolf population that remained in northern Minnesota to flourish and reestablish the population throughout the core range we have today in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the UP of Michigan. The existing wolves in the WGL are the descendants of wolves in the Minnesota

C. lupus

population that was protected in the 1978 listing; the wolves that were the subject of the recovery plans; the wolves that have met recovery goals; and the wolves that will be managed by States, Tribes, and other Federal agencies after delisting.

(4)

Comment:

The Service must analyze how hybridization with eastern wolves is affecting the viability of gray wolves.

Our Response:

In light of the ongoing scientific debate, and the lack of clear resolution concerning the taxonomy of wolves in the western Great Lakes, we are at this time continuing to recognize

C. lupus

as the only species that occurs in the WGL. The wolves that occupy the WGL DPS have long been accepted as gray wolves,

C. lupus,

and until greater scientific consensus is reached regarding whether to revise this taxonomic classification, the better conclusion is to continue to recognize them as gray wolves. See Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region for a full discussion.

(5)

Comment:

If two species of wolves exist in the WGL, those two species need to be evaluated separately to determine if each has independently been recovered; or the Service must determine whether the gray wolves (

C. lupus

) in the WGL, independent of

C. lycaon,

have met the numerical recovery criteria in the Eastern Timber Wolf Recovery Plan. Others express that because the WGL population is admixed, the Service cannot determine if the gray wolf (

C. lupus

) itself has been

recovered. We also received comments stating that the boundaries of the WGL DPS must be based on the gray wolf alone, not on the two species combined.

Our Response:

In light of the ongoing scientific debate, and the lack of clear resolution concerning the taxonomy of wolves in the western Great Lakes, we are at this time continuing to recognize

C. lupus

as the only species that occurs in the WGL. The wolves that occupy the WGL DPS have long been accepted as gray wolves,

C. lupus,

and until greater scientific consensus is reached regarding whether to revise this taxonomic classification, it is most logical to continue to recognize them as gray wolves. See Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region for a full discussion.

(6)

Comment:

A few commenters stated that wolves have not achieved recovery because disease, illegal killing, and other human-caused mortality, or inadequate regulatory mechanisms still threaten wolves in the WGL. Others stated that the Service has not provided a complete analysis of threats to wolves in the WGL.

Our Response:

Our detailed review of the past, current, and likely future threats to wolves within the WGL DPS identified human-caused mortality of all forms to constitute the majority of documented wolf deaths. However, the wolf populations in Wisconsin and Michigan have continued to expand in numbers and the Minnesota wolf population is at least maintaining itself at well over the population goal recommended in the 1992 Recovery Plan and at about twice the minimum level established in the 2001 Minnesota Wolf Plan. Healthy wolf populations clearly can withstand a high level of mortality, from human and other causes, and remain viable. We believe that, for purposes of this delisting decision, the numerical growth and range expansion shown by WGL DPS wolves indicate that adequate control of human-caused mortality already exists since the species is being maintained at healthy levels.

With regard to disease, several diseases have had noticeable impacts on wolf population growth in the Great Lakes region in the past. Despite these and other diseases and parasites, the overall trend for wolf populations in the WGL DPS continues to be upward. Wolf management plans for Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin include disease monitoring components that we expect will identify future disease and parasite problems in time to allow corrective action to avoid a significant decline in overall population viability. Disease may eventually limit overall wolf carrying capacity and contribute to annual fluctuations in wolf abundance, but at current and foreseeable population levels, diseases are not likely to affect viability or put wolves at risk again of becoming endangered or threatened.

We conducted a thorough analysis of the existing and likely future threats to wolves, giving specific consideration to the five categories of threats set forth in section 4(a)(1) of the Act—(1) habitat destruction or degradation or a reduction in the range of the gray wolf; (2) utilization by humans; (3) disease, parasites, or predatory actions by other animals or humans; (4) State, Tribal, and Federal regulatory measures; and (5) other threats (see Summary of Factors Affecting the Species). Based on our consideration of these factors individually and in combination, we concluded the Western Great Lakes wolf population is neither in danger of extinction nor likely to become so in the foreseeable future, in all or a significant portion of the population's range.

(7)

Comment:

A number of comments expressed opposition to delisting, making statements such as “wolves should always be protected” by the Act and “why do wolves have to be delisted.”

Our Response:

The Act provides the Federal Government with authority to protect and recover threatened and endangered species. When a species has been recovered to the extent that it no longer meets the definition of “threatened” or “endangered,” the Act provides that it should be removed from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants and its management be returned to the appropriate States and tribes (in cases where treaties identify such authorities for tribes). The goal of the Act is to recover listed species and then to delist them when they no longer qualify as threatened or endangered, thereby allowing the Service to focus its efforts on the many other species that do qualify as threatened and endangered. The WGL gray wolf DPS no longer meets the definition of a threatened or endangered species, as it has achieved long-standing recovery criteria by greatly expanding in numbers and geographic range and threats to its long-term viability have been reduced or eliminated. Therefore, the Act requires delisting the species, but it also requires that we continue to monitor the status of the species for a minimum of 5 years after delisting, and we can list it again if the monitoring results show that to be necessary.

(8)

Comment:

The WGL DPS should be reclassified to threatened instead of delisted as this would allow Wisconsin and Michigan to implement depredation control programs while maintaining the Act's protections for wolves.

Our Response:

We believe the gray wolf has achieved recovery in the WGL DPS and our five-factor analysis indicates that it is no longer endangered or threatened. Therefore, it should be delisted with management returning to the States and tribes.

(9)

Comment:

The Service should encourage North Dakota to revise its classification of the wolf and adopt a wolf management plan for the State.

Our Response:

The core of the range for the western Great Lakes population of gray wolves is in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Wolf management plans are only needed for these three States for the Service to be assured that WGL wolves will be managed in such a manner that they are not likely to become an endangered species in the foreseeable future. If North Dakota or other States within the WGL DPS wish to develop wolf management plans, the Service will provide technical assistance and guidance as requested.

(10)

Comment:

A couple of commenters stated that the Service improperly designated the WGL DPS for the purpose of delisting, further stating that the DPS tool is intended to be used to protect a population segment without having to list the entire species.

Our Response:

In this rule we recognize that the Minnesota gray wolf population listed as a species in 1978 has functioned effectively as a DPS ever since the DPS provision was added to the Act later in 1978. Under the Act, the Service is authorized to reevaluate that functional DPS listing and revise it to meet the criteria in the DPS policy and to reflect the “best available biological data” (see Western Great Lakes Distinct Population Segment). We are not designating a previously unidentified DPS, but are revising a preexisting listing of

Canis lupus

in Minnesota that functions as a DPS. Our reevaluation of the Minnesota listing demonstrates that a gray wolf DPS including only Minnesota (per the 1978 listing) would not meet the criteria in the DPS policy, because it would not be discrete “* * * in relation to the remainder of the species to which it belongs” (61 FR 4725, February 7, 1996). The Minnesota wolf population has expanded well beyond State boundaries and is connected to the wolf population in Wisconsin and Michigan, as evidenced by frequent movements of wolves among the States (Van Deelen 2009, p. 140; Treves

at al.

2009, pp. 192-195) and genetic analyses that demonstrate

the Wisconsin and Michigan wolves are mostly from the same genetic mix as Minnesota wolves (Wheeldon and White 2009, p. 4; Fain

et al.

2010). Therefore, we are delineating the boundaries of the expanded Minnesota population segment to meet the criteria in the DPS policy and to reflect the current geographic location of the population.

Moreover, even if we were identifying a new DPS at this time, we interpret the Act to allow DPSs to be used for both listing and delisting species. Section 4(a)(1) of the Act directs the Secretary of the Interior to determine whether “any species” is endangered or threatened. Numerous sections of the Act refer to adding and removing “species” from the list of threatened or endangered plants and animals. Section 3(16) defines “species” to include any subspecies “and any distinct population segment of any species of vertebrate fish or wildlife” Therefore, the Act authorizes us to revise the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants to list, reclassify, and delist species, subspecies, and DPSs of vertebrate species. Furthermore, our “Policy Regarding the Recognition of Distinct Vertebrate Population Segments under the Endangered Species Act” states that the policy is intended for “the purposes of listing, delisting, and reclassifying species under the Endangered Species Act * * *.” (61 FR 4722, Feb. 7, 1996), and that it “guides the evaluation of distinct vertebrate population segments for the purposes of listing, delisting, and reclassifying under the Act.” (61 FR 4725).

On December 12, 2008, the Solicitor of the Department of the Interior issued a formal opinion, “U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Authority Under Section 4(c)(1) of the Endangered Species Act to Revise Lists of Endangered and Threatened Species to `Reflect Recent Determinations' ” (U.S. DOI 2008). This opinion represents the views of the Department of the Interior and fully supports the Department's position that it is authorized in a single action to identify a DPS within a larger listed entity, determine that the DPS is neither endangered nor threatened, and then revise the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife to reflect those determinations. The opinion also notes that, although the term “delist” is not used in the Act, it is used extensively in the regulations implementing the section 4 listing provisions of the Act, such as 50 CFR 424.11(d). As explained in footnote 8 to the Solicitor's opinion, “As used by FWS, “delisting” applies broadly to

any

action that revises the lists either to remove an already-listed entity from the appropriate list in its entirety,

or

to reduce the geographic or taxonomic scope of a listing to exclude a group of organisms previously included as part of an already-listed entity.” The complete text of the Solicitor's formal opinion can be found at

http://www.fws.gov/midwest/wolf/.

Therefore, identification and delisting of a DPS is permissible.

(11)

Comment:

Two commenters stated that, when drawing the boundaries of the DPS, the Service must ensure that all significant portions of the range within the DPS support viable wolf populations. The boundaries should include, at most, core areas in which a population has fully recovered.

Our Response:

We have analyzed whether the species is threatened or endangered in a significant portion of its range in the WGL DPS (see Is the Species Threatened or Endangered in a Significant Portion of Its Range?). We believe all significant portions of the species' range within the DPS support viable wolf populations and that the gray wolf has achieved recovery throughout the WGL DPS and is no longer threatened or endangered. Therefore, it should be delisted with management returning to the States and tribes.

We have delineated the DPS to be closely tied to the biological wolf population in the area, and to be consistent with the two relevant court rulings (

Defenders of Wildlife

v.

Norton,

354 F. Supp. 2d 1156 (D. Or. 2005);

National Wildlife Federation

v.

Norton,

386 F. Supp. 2d 553 (D. Vt. 2005)). Wolf biology makes it unreasonable to define a wolf population, and hence a wolf DPS, as solely the area where wolf packs are present at viable levels. Any area that hosts wolf packs also is producing a substantial number of dispersing wolves, some of which return after short absences, while others travel farther and some never return. Delineation of a wolf population must recognize and account for this dispersal behavior to some degree. We believe our DPS delineation is appropriately based on the biological features of the species and the nature of a wolf population by being centered on the areas occupied by the core population, but also including a surrounding area that encompasses a reasonable portion of the areas visited by core population wolves making longer distance movements from their natal areas. We have included nearby areas that are likely to be visited by wolves that have dispersed from the core recovery areas because we believe these wolves should be considered part of that biological population while they are within a reasonable distance from the core areas. The areas of potentially suitable habitat that are currently unoccupied are relatively small, and even if occupied in the future, will not make a significant contribution to the long-term viability of the gray wolf population in the DPS or in the United States, and thus are not considered to be a significant portion of the species range.

A critical component of delineating the boundaries of a DPS is gaining an understanding of the population/metapopulation that is being designated as a DPS. Wolf biology clearly shows that temporary and permanent movements beyond the pack's territory are a key element of wolf population dynamics, and as such, these movements must be considered when delineating a boundary for a DPS. Furthermore, a biologically based DPS boundary cannot follow the edge of the fully occupied core areas, as this comment seems to advocate. Individual wolves would be constantly moving back and forth across such a boundary, and pack territories may form on both sides of the line in some years, and might disappear from one or both sides in subsequent years, depending on a number of physical, biological, and societal factors. We determined that the DPS boundary should recognize and accommodate the normal behavior of the metapopulation members.

(12)

Comment:

A few commenters suggested specific revisions to the DPS boundaries, such as including or not including all of the Dakotas or not including the northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan.

Our Response:

We considered the best available scientific data on wolf distributions and movements in delineating the boundaries of the Western Great Lakes DPS. We considered several options, among them drawing a tight line around the core Great Lakes wolf population or drawing a very large circle that included the core population as well as all areas visited by known dispersers. In the end, however, we determined that drawing the boundary line to include the core recovered wolf population in the Great Lakes Region, plus a wolf movement zone around the core population that includes areas visited by dispersers known to contribute to the core population, was the most biologically supported alternative. The determination was the result of a thorough review of biological data and the regulatory guidance. Additionally, the delineation of the DPS boundary was supported by the peer-reviewers.

(13)

Comment:

Corridors that allow safe movement of wolves among the

Great Lakes States must be maintained, and the benefits of these corridors must not be undermined by escalated lethal control of wolves.

Our Response:

Wolves are effective dispersers (Forbes and Boyd 1997), and existing habitat linkages among Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Canada allow long-distance movements. Long-distance movements of wolves through human-dominated landscapes in Minnesota and Wisconsin suggest highways and roads are not barriers (Mech

et al.

1995, p. 368; Merrill and Mech 2000, pp. 429-431). Wolves are capable of traveling through crop and range land (Licht and Fritts 1994, pp. 75, 77; Wydeven

et al.

1998, pp. 777) and can cross ice-covered lakes and rivers (Mech 1966, accessed at

http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/fauna7/fauna2a.htm

, not paginated) and unfrozen rivers during the summer (Van Camp and Gluckie 1979, pp. 236-237).

The Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan State management plans all include maintaining habitat linkages and dispersal corridors as a management component. In Minnesota, most of the occupied wolf range is contiguous; that is, most packs occur adjacent to or very near other packs. In addition, all wolves in Minnesota are connected with the much larger population inhabiting southern Canada (MN DNR 2001, p. 27). The dispersal corridor between Minnesota and Wisconsin (within and immediately to the south of management Zone 4) contains large land areas in public ownership (the Nemadji, St. Croix State Forests, Chengwatana State Forest, and St. Croix State Park) that are contiguous with large areas of county forest land in Wisconsin. Because of the habitat security of the public land base that is adjacent to Wisconsin between the Twin Cities and Duluth, wolf dispersal corridors between Minnesota and Wisconsin are well protected. The MN DNR will work in cooperation with the WI DNR on assessments of the effects of future development on dispersal in the interstate area (MN DNR 2001, p. 2).

The Wisconsin management plan (WI DNR 1999, p. 23) promotes cooperative habitat management with public land management agencies, industrial forests, and other private landowners, including protection of dispersal corridors on private, tribal, and public land to promote continued wolf movement to and from Michigan and Minnesota, as well as among Wisconsin packs. Furthermore, the Plan states that protection of corridor habitat should be a factor in considering acquisition of public land for other conservation purposes.

The MI management plan recognized the importance of continued movement of wolves within and among the states and Canada to help ensure the long-term viability of the wolf population. As a component of their management plan, the MI DNR will cooperate with Federal, State and tribal agencies and private landowners to identify and protect wolf habitat linkage zones (MI DNR 2008, pp. 39-40). The wolf management plans currently in place for Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan will be more than sufficient to retain viable wolf populations in each State. These State plans provide a very high level of assurance that wolf populations in these three States will not decline to nonviable levels in the foreseeable future.

(14)

Comment:

Several commenters stated that the Service must ensure that State wolf management strategies accommodate tribal interests within reservation boundaries as well as honor the tribal role and authority in wolf management in the ceded territories. Furthermore, the Federal trust responsibility, as it pertains to wolf management, must be continued after delisting.

Our Response:

The Service and the Department of the Interior recognize the unique status of federally recognized tribes, their right to self-governance, and their inherent sovereign powers over their members and territory. The Department, the Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), and other Federal agencies, as appropriate, will take the needed steps to ensure that tribal authority and sovereignty within reservation boundaries are respected as the States implement their wolf management plans and revise those plans in the future. Furthermore, there may be tribal activities or interests associated with the wolf encompassed within the tribes' retained rights to hunt, fish, and gather in treaty-ceded territories. The Department is available to assist in the exercise of those rights. If biological assistance is needed, the Service may provide it via our field offices. The Service will remain involved in the post-delisting monitoring of the gray wolf, but all Service management and protection authority under the Act will end with this delisting. Legal assistance may be provided to the tribes by the Department of the Interior, and the BIA will be involved, when needed.

(15)

Comment:

One commenter stated that the delisting process has highlighted the need for improved relationships between Tribes and the Service on wolf management issues. Several issues were highlighted: (a) The proposed rule states that “Tribal representatives declined to participate” in the development of a wolf management strategy for the lower 48 States. In fact, most Tribes in the country were given no opportunity to participate in this process, and the few intertribal organizations that had any opportunity were invited only after the process was already under way. (b) Many of the references to tribal management perspectives used in the proposal were 8-13 years old, disregarding the fact that tribal perspectives may change over time, possibly misrepresenting current tribal positions. (c) The section that discusses the Service's government-to-government relationship with the Tribes notes that the Service will “fully consider all of the comments on the proposed rule that are submitted by Tribes and Tribal members during the public comment period,” reflecting again the Service's failure to correctly recognize the proper nature of the Service-Tribal relationship.

Our Response:

As discussed in the proposed rule, the Service embarked on a structured decisionmaking process in 2008 as a means of developing a more integrated and comprehensive strategy for gray wolf conservation in the lower 48 States and Mexico. The overall intent of the process was to identify appropriate wolf entities (

i.e.,

listing units) for full status review, anticipating that such review would lead to either confirmation or revision of the existing gray wolf listing. We first conducted several iterations of the process in an internal Service effort to develop a viable framework for considering the scientific and policy questions that drive decisionmaking for wolves. Following our development of a satisfactory decisionmaking framework, we convened a workshop in August 2010 to generate and assess alternative taxonomic and population units at various scales and in various configurations, including the 1978 listing as the

status quo

alternative. The outcomes from the workshop provided input to our continuing effort to formulate a comprehensive vision of wolf conservation, which evolved into the proposed national wolf strategy discussed in the proposal. This strategy was a broad outline, the components of which are in various stages of execution. The process used to develop the proposed national wolf strategy evolved as we proceeded through our task, and different parties were engaged at different times.

Although the Midwest Tribes and Inter-Tribal Natural Resource Management Agencies were not

participants at the August 2010 workshop, we worked hard to involve them in developing a proposal that was specific to the Midwest area. In doing so, to make sure that our proposal appropriately reflected the current status of Tribal wolf management activities, we contacted each Tribe in the Service's Midwest Region that we knew to be involved in wolf management activities in order to clarify their management efforts to date and the status of any Tribal wolf management plans. We hold our government-to-government relationship with Tribes in very high regard and respect Tribal sovereignty. Accordingly, all of the comments received from Tribes and Inter-Tribal Natural Resource Management Agencies in response to the proposed rule were considered in the final rule. In addition, during the comment period, we met with the Chippewa Ottawa Resources Authority Board and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission's Voigt Inter-Tribal Task Force to discuss the proposal. We also offered to meet individually with and discuss the proposal with any Tribe that wanted to do so, however none accepted our offer.

(16)

Comment:

Post-delisting monitoring is critical and should extend beyond the typical 5-year period. Public harvest will likely take 3-5 years to implement, and this is the variable most likely to affect wolf populations. This variable cannot be adequately evaluated within the 5-year PDM period.

Our Response:

The Service will implement the PDM plan for at least 5 years after delisting the WGL DPS. During the monitoring period, if the Service detects a change in wolf populations or a significant increase in threats, it can evaluate and change monitoring methods or consider relisting. At the end of the PDM period the Service will conduct a final internal review and may request reviews by the former members of the Eastern Gray Wolf Recovery Team and other independent specialists, as appropriate. If the final internal review indicates that substantive changes have been made to how wolves are managed, we may extend the monitoring period to evaluate potential impacts. Based on those final reviews, which will be posted on the Service's Internet site, the Service will decide whether to relist, extend the monitoring period, or end monitoring.

(17)

Comment:

One peer reviewer stated that the recent scientific literature contains a few additional pertinent papers on gray wolf diseases and parasites. She noted that those papers are in agreement with the discussion points and conclusions in the proposed rule (pp. 26112-26114).

Our Response:

We have incorporated information from those recent scientific papers into our analysis of disease as a potential threat (see the discussion under C. Disease or Predation). That information does not alter our determination that diseases are not likely to affect the viability of wolves or put wolves in the WGL at risk.

(18)

Comment:

Several commenters expressed concern regarding whether the States would implement a public harvest or recreational hunting after wolves are federally delisted. Others commented that they support a public harvest or recreational hunting. A number provided suggestions on how or specifically where such a public harvest should be implemented, if it is.

Our Response:

Unregulated killing was the primary threat to the species historically. The State management plans that will be implemented after delisting provide protection from unregulated killing. It is not the Service's position to decide whether a regulated harvest in and of itself is an appropriate management tool. Instead the Service is concerned with whether the use of that tool might reduce the number of wolves in such a way that they would again be considered a threatened or endangered species under the Act. A regulated harvest of wolves can be carried out in a manner that would not threaten their continued existence.

(19)

Comment:

A couple of commenters stated that the recovery criteria have not been achieved because either the wolf population data are wrong, or because the Wisconsin-Michigan wolf population is not a second population as is required by the recovery criteria found in the 1992 Recovery Plan.

Our Response:

We are fully satisfied that the wolf population estimates provided by the Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan DNRs demonstrate that the numerical recovery criteria have been achieved for far longer than the 5 years recommended in the Federal Recovery Plan. The methods used by WI and MI DNRs result in a conservative count of the wolves that are alive at the late-winter annual low point of the wolf population. The method used by the Minnesota DNR for its much larger wolf population is less precise, but even the lower bound of its 90 percent confidence interval (CI) exceeded the Federal Recovery Plan's Minnesota goal of 1,250-1,440 wolves back as far as the 1988-89 survey (Fuller

et al.

1992, p. 50) and the CI lower bound has been well above that goal since then (Erb and Benson 2004, Table 1). Therefore, we see no problem with using these Minnesota population estimates. Members of the Recovery Team have also expressed confidence in the population estimates of all three States (Peterson in litt. 1999a, in litt. 1999b).

The 1992 Federal Recovery Plan describes two scenarios that would satisfy its goal for a second viable wolf population. One scenario deals with the development of an isolated wolf population; such a population must be composed of at least 200 wolves over five successive years. The second scenario is a population that is located within 100 miles of another viable wolf population; such a population must consist of only 100 wolves for five consecutive years (USFWS 1992, pp. 25-26). The Recovery Plan discusses the conservation tradeoffs of completely separate populations versus adjacent populations, and it specifically states that a wolf population larger than 100 wolves “closely tied to the Minnesota population” will be considered a viable population despite its small size, because of immigration of wolves from Minnesota (USFWS 1992, pp. 24-25). Although this Recovery Plan was written prior to the common acceptance and use of the conservation biology term “metapopulation,” this clearly was the concept being discussed and advocated in the Federal Recovery Plan. The second scenario describes what has occurred in the WGL DPS, and, therefore, the wolves in Wisconsin and Michigan qualify as a second population (see Recovery Criteria for a full discussion).

(20)

Comment:

Delisting in the WGL will prevent wolves from further expanding into areas of their previous range. The Service cannot delist wolves in one portion of their range when the species remains endangered throughout the remainder of its historical range, and where viable habitat for the species exists such that further recovery within its historical range can be promoted.

Our Response:

Delisting the Western Great Lakes DPS does not discourage wolf conservation in other parts of their range. The Act defines “conservation” as “the use of all methods and procedures which are necessary to bring any endangered species or threatened species to the point at which the measures provided pursuant to this chapter are no longer necessary.” 16 U.S.C. 1532(3). The States, tribes, and conservation groups have all played a key role in the recovery of the WGL wolf population and now, because the wolf population is recovered and healthy, continued conservation efforts under the Act are no longer necessary within

the DPS. The assertion that delisting the WGL DPS is inconsistent with the Act's conservation requirement is based on an apparent confusion of the term “conservation” with “restoration.” A species is conserved when it no longer meets the Act's definitions of endangered species or threatened species and, at such time, the species should be delisted. This does not require the range-wide restoration of the gray wolf to all areas that it historically inhabited before it may be delisted in the WGL region—an area that is inhabited by a healthy, recovered wolf population.

Because this final rule does not alter the listing status of wolves under the Act outside of the DPS, it does not hinder the Service's or States' ability to implement reintroduction and recovery programs in other areas of the country. The commenters' focus on the alleged inability of wolves within the DPS to disperse to other areas is misdirected because it takes an overly narrow view of wolf recovery possibilities. This final rule in itself does not foreclose further wolf recovery in other areas of suitable habitat via reintroduction programs. Indeed, gray wolf populations in Wyoming, central Idaho, and the southwestern United States did not develop from dispersers, but from wolf reintroductions that were planned and carried out by the Service and partner agencies and organizations. Continued wolf recovery in areas outside of the Western Great Lakes DPS is not prevented by delisting the Western Great Lakes DPS.

(21)

Comment:

Numerous commenters indicated that our delisting proposal was based on unspecified political considerations, pressure from the livestock industry, exaggerated fears for human safety, pressure from deer/bear hunters and furbearer trappers, and pressure from States. We were asked by other commenters to consider the value of wolves for keeping deer numbers in check, to maintaining healthy ungulate populations, for maintaining native vegetation and other species of wildlife, and in balancing nature. Others thought we should consider the economic benefits provided by a large wolf population. We also received numerous comments indicating that wolves should be delisted because of fear for public safety, increased wolf-human conflicts, reduced funding to control depredating wolves, and/or decreasing public tolerance for wolves.

Our Response:

The Act requires that listing and delisting decisions be based entirely on whether a species is endangered or threatened due to one or more categories of threats (section 4(a)(1)) and that we make this determination “solely on the basis of the best scientific and commercial data available.” In compliance with the Act, the other nonscientific considerations and factors described above have not been used in making this decision. The WGL gray wolf DPS no longer meets the definition of a threatened or endangered species, and has achieved the recovery criteria established in the Eastern Timber Wolf Recovery Plan (Service 1992) by greatly expanding in numbers and geographic range, and threats to its long long-term viability have been reduced or eliminated.

(22)

Comment:

Several comments recommended that specific changes be made to the three State wolf management plans or that the State management plans are not “protective enough” of wolves.

Our Response:

We have reviewed the 2001 Minnesota Plan, the 1999 and 2006 Updated Wisconsin Plan, and the 1997 and 2008 revised Michigan Plan. We reviewed these plans to determine if they will provide sufficient protection and reduce threats. We are primarily concerned with the outcome of the plan's implementation. Once a species is delisted, the details of its management are a State or tribal responsibility; the Federal responsibility is to monitor the plan's implementation and the species' response for at least 5 years to ensure that the plan's outcome is as expected. We have concluded that each plan provides adequate protection for wolves, and will keep threats at a sufficiently low level, so that the WGL DPS wolves will not become threatened or endangered in the foreseeable future. Suggestions for changes to the State wolf management plans should be directed to the respective State management agency for consideration.

(23)

Comment:

Several comments expressed distrust for State wolf protection, based on past State programs aimed at wolf eradication.

Our Response:

We acknowledge the past involvement of State and Federal government agencies in intensive, and largely successful, programs to eradicate wolves. However, we believe that public sentiment and agency mandates have changed dramatically since the 1960s and earlier (see Public Attitudes Toward the Wolf). While wolf eradication might still be the wish of a small number of individuals, we believe there is broad support among the public and within governmental agencies to allow wolves to occupy our landscape, with some degree of management imposed to maintain control of the level of wolf-human conflicts. Based on existing State laws and State management plans, we will rely on the States to provide sufficient protection to wolves until and unless it is shown they are unwilling or unable to do so.

(24)

Comment:

The delisting decision is based on the assumption that the State wolf management plans will be fully implemented and funded after Federal delisting.

Our Response:

We are required to evaluate the likely future threats that a delisted wolf population will experience. We rely heavily on the State wolf management plans for our assessment of the degree of protection and monitoring that will occur after Federal delisting. Because these plans have received the necessary approvals within the State governments, we believe it is reasonable to assume the plans will be funded and implemented largely as written. Wisconsin and Michigan DNRs have led the efforts to restore wolves to their States for several decades. Based on their proven leadership in Midwest wolf recovery, we see no reason to doubt the continuing commitment of these State agencies to wolf conservation.

We recognize that State wolf plans can be changed by the respective DNR or State legislature, creating some uncertainty regarding plan implementation. However, given the high public visibility of wolf management, the extent of public interest and involvement in the development and updating of the States' plans, the vast amount of scientific data available regarding wolf management, and the status monitoring that we will be maintaining for the next 5 years, we believe it is reasonable and proper to assume that the three State wolf plans will not be significantly changed, nor will their implementation be critically underfunded, in a manner that would jeopardize the viability of any State's wolf population. If this assumption turns out to be incorrect, we have the ability to extend the monitoring period or relist the species, including an emergency relisting, if necessary.

(25)

Comment:

Human-caused mortality poses too high a risk to delist the wolf. The wolf cannot be delisted “until this threat has been adequately controlled.”

Our Response:

Our detailed review of the past, current, and likely future threats to wolves within the WGL DPS identified human-caused mortality of all forms to constitute the majority of documented wolf deaths. However, the wolf populations in Wisconsin and Michigan have continued to expand in numbers and the Minnesota wolf population is at least maintaining itself at well over the population goal

recommended in the 1992 Recovery Plan and at about twice the minimum level established in the 2001 Minnesota Wolf Plan. Healthy wolf populations clearly can withstand a high level of mortality, from human and other causes, and remain viable. Although the commenters do not provide any clarification on what is meant by “adequately controlled” we believe that, for purposes of this delisting decision, the numerical growth and range expansion shown by WGL DPS wolves indicate that “adequate control” already exists since the species is being maintained at healthy levels.

Summary of Changes From Proposed Rule

In this final rule, we make two substantive changes from the proposal. First, we are separating our determination on the delisting of the Western Great Lakes DPS from the determination on our proposal regarding all or portions of the 29 States we considered to be outside the historical range of the gray wolf. This rule finalizes our determination for the WGL DPS. A subsequent decision will be made for the rest of the eastern United States.

In this final rule, we also amend our taxonomic interpretation of wolves in the WGL. In the proposed rule, we presented and proposed to recognize recent taxonomic information indicating that the gray wolf subspecies

Canis lupus lycaon

should be elevated to the full species

C. lycaon.

We believed the best available scientific information supported recognition of the eastern wolf,

C. lycaon,

as a species and that this species had intercrossed with

C. lupus

in the western Great Lakes region to constitute a population composed of

C. lupus, C. lycaon,

and their hybrids.

During the public comment period on the proposal, we received comments from diverse interest groups and individuals (including scientific researchers, State natural resource agencies, sportsmen's groups, cattlemen's groups, and conservation groups) highlighting the ongoing debate regarding the taxonomy of North American wolves. Some of those commenters questioned the position that

C. lycaon

be recognized as a species (rather than a subspecies); others stated that, in light of ongoing research and recent papers that present varying taxonomic alternatives, it is premature to accept

C. lycaon

as a separate species. To allow for further consideration of the taxonomy issue, on August 26, 2011, we reopened the public comment period on the proposal to allow for additional public review and comment specifically on the recognition of

C. lycaon

as a separate species. At that time we made available to the public a manuscript prepared by Service employees that is currently undergoing review for publication (Chambers

et al.,

in prep.). The manuscript provides a review of the available scientific literature to assess the taxonomic standing of wolves in North America. Our recognition of

C. lycaon

as a separate species in the proposal was, in part, based on information summarized in that manuscript. During the reopened public comment period, we again received numerous comments focused on taxonomy.

Many of the comments we received during both comment periods came from leading researchers in the field of canid biology and genetics, including many of the scientists responsible for the research upon which we based the decision in our proposal. Many of the scientists who commented regarding taxonomy during the first comment period submitted additional comments after reviewing the Chambers

et al.

(in prep.) manuscript. Several recent publications on the subject were also submitted (

e.g.,

Mech 2011, Mech

et al.

in press, vonHoldt

et al.

2011).

One particular comment letter was signed by eight leading researchers in this field (Weeldon

et al.

in litt. 2011), many of whom also submitted individual comments on the proposal. In that letter they acknowledge their differing views on wolf taxonomy, yet express that they all disagree with the Service's conclusion in the proposal that two separate species of wolves inhabit the WGL. Those scientists state that research and data collection regarding whether two separate species of wolves inhabit the WGL and whether gray wolves (

Canis lupus

) historically occupied portions of the eastern United States is ongoing, and that such research will continue to elucidate the taxonomic history of wolves in North America.

L. David Mech, preeminent wolf researcher and peer reviewer for the proposal, submitted comments stating that the proposal to delist wolves in the WGL is well supported by the data, except for the data regarding taxonomy (Mech in litt. 2011). He states: “Although it is true that at the writing of the proposed rule, it seemed like considerable evidence had accumulated supporting the existence of the separate species,

Canis lycaon,

or the eastern wolf, the vonHoldt

et al.

(2011) article published since adds enough doubt as to question that proposition. At the least, the vonHoldt

et al.

(2011) article evinces that there is not consensus by the pertinent scientific community about the existence of

C. lycaon

and therefore about the original range of

C. lupus.”

The Service also received a number of comments from conservation groups that, while supporting the delisting of wolves in the WGL, asserted that the Service's proposal to recognize

C. lycaon

as a full species was not supported by the best available science. The Natural Resources Defense Council (in litt 2011) cite that “the Service's decision to recognize a separate species of wolf,

C. lycaon,

in this region is not supported by the best available science” and “while the issue of wolf taxonomy has long been debated, the existence of an eastern wolf,

C. lycaon,

as a separate species is not fully supported by the scientific community. Additionally, the taxonomy of wolves in this region is the subject of current and active research. As such, it is premature to declare the existence of

C. lycaon

as a distinct species.” Defenders of Wildlife (in litt. 2011) state that “a definitive conclusion cannot be made [regarding the taxonomic status of the eastern wolf] at this time.” The National Wildlife Federation (in litt. 2011) asserts that “given the significant taxonomic debate that is currently underway among respected scientists” and “because the scientific community remains unsettled, the taxonomic revision proposed in this rule is premature.”

The State natural resource agencies in the WGL also expressed that the debate regarding wolf taxonomy is unsettled. The MN DNR (in litt. 2011) states “several competing theories exist surrounding the ongoing controversy over wolf taxonomy in the Great Lakes region. There is no general consensus regarding these theories, and * * * it will continue to be of great debate in the scientific community.” They further contend that vonHoldt

et al.

(2011) “which contradicts other recent reports, exemplifies the limitations of drawing final conclusions from the relatively new, rapidly evolving, and competing theories from the science of molecular genetics. We recognize the ongoing controversy over wolf taxonomy in the western Great Lakes region and suggest that the Service has prematurely accepted only one of several competing alternatives to the taxonomic classification of wolves.” The WI DNR (Stepp in litt. 2011) asserts that “scientists continue to disagree whether the eastern wolf is a separate species from gray wolves” while the MI DNR (in litt. 2011) states “we recognize that the science regarding which species of wolves occur in the Western Great Lakes is not settled, but we also recognize that wolf conservation cannot be put on hold

until every scientific question has a consensus answer.”

Numerous other groups also commented on the issue of recognizing

C. lycaon

as a separate species. Safari Club International (in litt. 2011) states “as is evidenced by the myriad comments offered by experts in wolf biology and taxonomy that are either published in the scientific literature or were submitted in response to the previous comment opportunity, the question of a separate taxonomic species classification for a new species of wolves in the Western Great Lakes (WGL) is highly disputed and controversial at best.” Both the Sierra Club (in litt. 2011) and the Michigan Environmental Council (in litt. 2011) declare that “there is still a significant lack of clarity within the scientific community regarding the existence of

Canis lycaon”

while the Center for Biological Diversity (in litt. 2011) states “the evidence shows that declaring the eastern wolf a distinct species is not supported by the best available science.” The Society for Conservation Biology (in litt. 2011) contends that “the proposed rule's use of

Canis lycaon

to designate wolves in the northeastern United States is inconsistent with currently recognized scientific nomenclature” and “given this continued scientific controversy.* * *” The Humane Society of the United States (in litt. 2011) asserts that the Service's proposal “is based on unsettled science with respect to the recognition of a new species of wolf, the eastern wolf” and the Service's conclusion regarding the eastern wolf “is a matter of continuing scientific debate.”

The extensive information submitted during the comment periods and recent publications on the subject and the widely diverging views expressed in the pertinent scientific studies underscore the enduring debate regarding the taxonomy of North American wolves—a debate that may not be resolved for some time (see Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region for a full discussion). Although there is not a significant number of new publications that have become available since we published our proposal in May 2011, the substance of those new publications and the substantive comments we received have led us to reconsider our proposed decision.

Based on a reevaluation of the available scientific information and the evolving and ongoing scientific debate, we reconsidered our position, as expressed in the proposed rule (76 FR 26086), that the gray wolf subspecies

Canis lupus lycaon

should be elevated to the full species

Canis lycaon

and that the population of wolves in the WGL is a mix of the two full species,

Canis lupus

and

Canis lycaon.

While there are varying scientific opinions on the taxonomic history of North American wolves, for a long time and throughout this technical debate,

Canis lupus

is the species that has been recognized in the WGL, and there is significant information indicating that continuing to recognize

C. lupus

as the species in the WGL is appropriate (see Wolf Taxonomy in the Western Great Lakes Region). Having reviewed and assessed all of the available scientific information, including, in particular, the comments received on the proposed rule and the information that has become available since the proposed rule was published, we have decided the better conclusion to draw at this time is our previous taxonomic recognition that all wolves in the WGL area are gray wolves (

Canis lupus

). Therefore, in this final rule we consider all wolves in the WGL DPS to be gray wolves (

Canis lupus

) and are delisting them as such.

Summary of Factors Affecting the Species

Section 4 of the Act and its implementing regulations (50 CFR part 424) set forth the procedures for listing species, reclassifying species, or removing species from listed status. “Species”

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