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The grey wolf has been officially removed from the endangered species list. They've been on the endangered species list for over 45 years, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt made the official announcement on Thursday at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. He said, "the gray wolf has exceeded all conservation goals for recovery."

The Minnesota DNR released a statement about this decision to remove the grey wolf from the endangered and threatened species list. They wrote that in Minnesota they believe the grey wolf population has recovered. They actually made that decision back in July of 2019. However, when the Minnesota DNR said this in July of 2019 they also said that “'a blanket delisting across the United States may not be warranted.'” They say in their most recent statement from October 29th, 2020 that they continue to believe that to be true.

So what does this delisting mean for the grey wolf? This means that it's now up to the individual states and tribes to continue management "for healthy wolf populations". Does this mean there could be an option to hunt grey wolves again in Minnesota? It's possible.

The Minnesota DNR is currently in the process of updating its wolf management plan, according to Bring Me the News. Once the update has been finalized they will then make a decision of if wolf hunting and trapping will be allowed.

The DNR is actually looking for our input on their wolf management plan. If you would like to voice your opinion to the DNR you can do so through November 20th HERE.

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