The Sportsmen's Advocate Fall 2022 | Page 21

ADOBE STOCK ( 4 ) of wolves found in Minnesota , Michigan and Wisconsin — and we ’ ve successfully removed them from ESA protection three times , which has allowed short-lived hunting seasons . Unfortunately , the Humane Society of the United States and other animal-rights groups have sued to overturn these advances and have kept the issue tied up in court .
CURRENT STANDING : The D . C . Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017 upheld a lower court ’ s 2014 ruling that the U . S . Fish and Wildlife Service ( FWS ) erred in delisting wolves in 2011 . This returned Great Lakes wolves to listed status under the ESA . Very importantly , however , the appellate court laid out a road map for FWS to delist the Western Great Lakes wolves and dismantled many of the unsupported requirements from the lower court decision . The outcome of the Lower 48 decision , discussed below , will provide guidance on Great Lakes wolves .
LOWER 48 WOLF CASE
COURT : Federal
WHAT ’ S AT STAKE : Predator management , states ’ rights
PARTNERS : Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation , Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association , Michigan Bear Hunters Association
SUMMARY : The FWS , under the Trump administration , delisted all wolves throughout the lower 48 states . Like clockwork , Defenders of Wildlife and other anti-hunting and animal-rights activists sued the FWS to overturn the delisting . On Feb . 10 , 2022 , District Court Judge Jeffery White of the Northern District of California ruled in favor of these radical animal-rights and environmental groups and returned lower 48 wolves ( except in Idaho , Montana and Wyoming and portions of neighboring states , where wolves were Congressionally delisted ) to protected status .
CURRENT STANDING : The FWS , under the Biden administration , has appealed the decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals , where we await a hearing . The Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Foundation and our partners filed an amicus brief in the district court and expect to file one again in the court of appeals .
Note that the same anti-hunting and animal-rights activists are petitioning FWS to return wolves in Idaho , Montana , Wyoming and portions of adjoining states to ESA protected status . The Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Foundation and its partners met with FWS to oppose relisting and have filed written comments opposing any such move .
ALASKA PRESERVES
COURT : Federal
WHAT ’ S AT STAKE : States ’ rights , Alaska Natives ’ rights , public lands , predator management , wildlife management
The authority to manage wildlife like caribou in Alaska should rest with the state , not the federal government .
PARTNERS : Alaska Professional Hunters Association , Safari Club International , State of Alaska
SUMMARY : When the Obama administration in 2015 changed wildlife management rules for national parks and preserves to put federal land managers in charge of determining hunting methods , means and seasons , the Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Foundation filed suit to protect Alaska ’ s right to manage wildlife . Because some of the banned hunting methods are utilized by Alaska Native populations , the lawsuit also sought to protect Native subsistence hunting practices . Under the Trump administration , the rules were returned to status quo , meaning our lawsuit accomplished its objective of restoring state management . However , the Humane Society of the United States and other groups have sued the FWS to revive the Obama Administration rule and scuttle state authority .
CURRENT STANDING : The Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Foundation and Alaska Professional Hunters Association have once again stepped in to protect scientific wildlife management , the right of Alaska to manage game on federal lands
Common hunting bullets with lead cores will be banned from national wildlife refuges if the Biden administration settles a lawsuit brought by the Center for Biologival Diversity .
FALL 2022 19