DES MOINES – The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia reinstated Federal protections for wolves in the western Great Lakes region on December 19, 2014. The US Fish and Wildlife Service published its rule on the decision Friday.
The ruling once again classifies gray wolves in all of Wisconsin and Michigan, the eastern half of North Dakota and South Dakota, the northern half of Iowa, the northern portions of Illinois and Indiana, and the northwestern portion of Ohio are once again classified as endangered, and wolves in Minnesota are once again classified as threatened.
In Iowa, coyote hunters are encouraged review the characteristic differences that distinguish a wolf from a coyote.
In general, wolves are larger and bulkier while coyotes are shorter, sleek and lighter on their feet. There is more information and identification tips online at www.iowadnr.gov/wolves. There is currently not a breeding population of gray wolves in Iowa, but there has been an occasional visitor in recent years.
The decision vacated and set aside the 2011 delisting rule (The Humane Society of the United States, et al., v. Jewell, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 175846 (D.D.C. Dec. 19, 2014). More details are available at
https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/fish-and-wildlife-service and click on Rules in the Current Issue task bar near the top of the page and scroll down to Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reinstatement of Final Rules for the Gray Wolf in Wyoming and the Western Great Lakes in Compliance With Court Order.
