What changes were made for wolves in the Southwestern Gray Wolf Distinct Population Segment?
The Service’s recent actions did not change the status of gray wolves in the Southwestern DPS; they continue to be classified as endangered. The “non-essential experimental population” area in central New Mexico and Arizona and a small portion of west Texas also remains in place. 7) What is the status of gray wolves in states outside the historical range of the gray wolf? States outside the three DPSs are outside the historical range of the gray wolf in the lower 48 states. Because gray wolves did not historically live in these states, we delisted wolves outside these areas, removing them from the Federal list of endangered and threatened species. 8) How did the Service make its final decision to change the gray wolf’s status? When we proposed to change the gray wolf’s legal status in 2000, we held a series of public information meetings, as well as 14 public hearings throughout the country. During the 120-day public comment period, the Service received about 17,000 unique comments on
