FEBRUARY 22, 2024 BY ANN MCCREARY

WDFW proposes downlisting state’s gray wolves’ status

Would be reclassified as ‘sensitive species’

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Gray wolves in Washington, currently listed as an endangered species under state law, would be reclassified as a sensitive species under a rule proposed by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).

WDFW is seeking public input until May 6 on the proposed rule, which would reduce criminal penalties for killing wolves, among other changes.

The proposal by WDFW staff to downlist gray wolves is the result of a periodic status review that is required every five years for protected wildlife species listed as endangered, threatened or sensitive.

The agency said it based its decision on 14 years of data and trends on Washington’s wolf population and on a new population model developed at the University of Washington.

“Wolves in Washington have made significant progress toward recovery since their original state endangered listing in 1980, when there were no known breeding wolves in the state,” said Julia Smith, WDFW’s endangered species recovery section manager.

“This recommended reclassification to sensitive reflects that progress and most accurately describes the current status of wolves in Washington, while also recognizing that wolves are not established in western Washington and should remain protected,” Smith said.

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Under state law, an “endangered” species is defined as “seriously threatened with extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range within the state.” A “sensitive” species is defined as “vulnerable or declining and likely to become endangered or threatened in a significant portion of its range.” 

In the western two-thirds of Washington (including the Methow Valley) where wolves are currently listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), the change in the state listing would not affect wolves’ federal status. Wolves in the eastern third of the state, west of Highway 97, are not protected under the ESA (see related story) and are managed by WDFW based on their listing status under state law.

Some differences

Downlisting wolves from endangered to sensitive would maintain prohibitions on hunting and malicious and intentional harassment of gray wolves. Differences in management and protection for wolves listed as endangered or sensitive include provisions related to criminal penalties, permits for lethal control, and actions that can be taken in critical habitats.

For instance, penalties for killing an endangered wolf range up to $5,000 and/or one year in jail. If wolves are listed as sensitive, the maximum penalty for killing a wolf is $1,000 and/or 90 days in jail.

Permits for lethal control by livestock owners (including family and authorized employees) are generally not issued in the case of endangered wolves unless WDFW does not have the resources to address control issues. However, permits to kill wolves may be issued to livestock owners (family and employees) on private lands and public grazing allotments if wolves are listed as sensitive.

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For wolves listed as endangered, activities such as harvesting, road construction or site preparation within one mile of a known wolf den site is prohibited between March 15 and July 30, and prohibited with one-quarter of a mile from a den site at other times of year. For wolves listed as sensitive, not such restrictions apply.

WDFW said the timeline for consideration of the proposed rule includes a meeting on March 15-16 of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission, which will include a briefing on the proposed rule change, followed by a pubic hearing. 

On April 18-20, the Fish and Wildlife Commission will hear WDFW staff present results from the state’s annual gray wolf management report, which includes an estimate of wolf population throughout the state. The commission will discuss if data from the report should be considered when deciding whether to reclassify wolves in Washington.

At a meeting on June 19-20, the Fish and Wildlife Commission is tentatively scheduled to make a decision on the proposed rule to downlist wolves.

Population growth

The first documented breeding pack in Washington since the early 1900s was the Lookout Pack in the Methow Valley, confirmed in 2008. The most recent population estimate, as of December 31, 2022, counted a minimum of 216 wolves in 37 packs with at least 26 successful breeding pairs. 

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The Methow Valley was home to four gray wolf packs with a total of 31 wolves, according to the 2022 wolf count. The Lookout, Chewuch, Loup Loup and Sullivan packs all had successful breeding pairs.

In a summary of its periodic review of wolves, WDFW noted that the wolf population in Washington has increased each year since the state began monitoring wolves. Northeast and southeast Washington wolf population growth has slowed due to wolf reoccupation of most of the available suitable habitat, WDFW said. The 2022 annual population revealed a continued increase in wolf packs and successful breeding pairs in the North and Central Cascades as well as novel presence in the South Cascades. 

Documented mortality annually averaged 10% of the known population from 2008-2022, according to WDFW. Legal harvest on tribal lands is the largest source of Washington’s documented wolf mortality from 2008-2022 (36% of documented mortality), followed by lethal removal by WDFW in response to conflicts with livestock (24%), and poaching (11%). Human-caused mortality during 2008-2022 constitutes 87% of known wolf mortality, according to WDFW.   

Wolves in Washington are managed under a state conservation and management plan that sets goals for population recovery. Wolf population growth in Washington has largely occurred in the absence of federal protection, WDFW said. The majority of Washington wolf packs (an average of 79% of all packs 2011-2022) are in the eastern third of the state, where wolves have not been federally protected since 2011. 

Wolves in that part of the Washington, as well as nearby states like Idaho, will be important to the viability of wolves statewide. “Continued population growth and range expansion will depend on the robustness of source populations in eastern Washington (as well as neighboring states and provinces) and cooperative management to ensure sources of human-caused mortality do not impede recovery,” WDFW said. 

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Public comments on the WDFW proposal may be submitted until 11:59 p.m. on May 6. Members of the public can submit comments on the proposed rule in several ways:

• Go to publicinput.com/sepa_graywolf and submit a written comment.

• Email graywolf2024@publicinput.com.

• Call 855-925-2801 and enter project code 6505 to leave a voicemail.

• Mail written comments to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, attention Wildlife Program, P.O. Box 43200, Olympia, WA 98504.