Grizzlies Officially De-Listed – Again
Written by Andrew-Rossi on August 1, 2017
For the second time in a decade, the U.S. government has removed grizzly bears in the Yellowstone region from the threatened species list.
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service announced on June 22nd that it was returning management to the states, but officials with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department say there is a 30 day period following the official filing of the rule for delisting.
The decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove federal protections from the approximately 700 bears living across 19,000 square miles in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming took effect yesterday.
Brian Nesvik, chief of Game and Fish’s wildlife division, says that management of the animals will change very little, other than that federal oversight will no longer occur on decisions regarding actions such as capture, relocation and removal, and hunting of grizzly bears in those areas where Wyoming has jurisdiction.
The State of Wyoming has spent $45 million on grizzly bear recovery and management while the species has been on the endangered species list. It will be up to the courts again to decide whether they stay off the list.
