Wolves have been removed from federal Endangered Species Act protection in the eastern third of Washington State, but they remain protected as a state endangered species throughout Washington.

Under Congressional direction that prevents any judicial review, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has removed the northern Rocky Mountain population of gray wolves from federal endangered status. The action affects wolves in Montana, Idaho, the eastern third of Oregon and Washington and a small area of north central Utah.

The federal de-listing covers eastern Washington east of State Route 97 from the Canadian border to Highway 17, east of Highway 17 to State Route 395, and east of State Route 395 to the Oregon border. That federal de-listing boundary was based on the anticipated dispersal of wolves from recovered populations in the other states.

Wolves are still state-listed as endangered in Washington because their numbers are low and they do not inhabit most of their historic range, according to Fish and Wildlife biologists. The state population is estimated at two dozen wolves, with only a couple of successful breeding pairs or packs with pups documented to date.

Wolves remain federally listed as an endangered species in the western two-thirds of the state. 

Information about wolves, including wolf-livestock conflict prevention and suspected wolf depredation reporting, is available by calling the wolf reporting hotline at 1-888-584-9038.

After being extirpated as a breeding species in the 1930's, wolves have been naturally returning to Washington over a period of years. The first documented breeding pair was confirmed in western Okanogan County in 2008. A second pair with pups was confirmed in Pend Oreille County in 2009.

Dennis comment: OK fine, but let's not let the population grow so large they begin to hurt our deer and elk herds. Let's make sure wolf hunting is a part of the plan.