The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Monday agreed to return gray wolves in the western Great Lakes region to the endangered species list.
The agency admitted that it failed to hold a legally required public comment period before halting protection in April for about 4,000 wolves in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
The agreement was reached as a settlement with environmental groups that sued the agency earlier this month. However, the agreement does not include wolves in Montana and Idaho, for which legal proceedings were followed before delisting.
The settlement must be approved by a U.S. District Judge. The Fish and Wildlife Service said it will hold a 60-day comment period before attempting to delist the animals again–a move which is likely, because the agency feels the wolves have met recovery criteria.
Read the full Associated Press report at the link below.
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