ALBUQUERQUE — As Wolf Awareness Week begins, October 18th–24th, New Mexico Wild is defending the Mexican gray wolf in federal court and rallying the public to urge Congress to keep the lobo protected.

Last week, on October 13th, New Mexico Wild and its partners, represented by the Western Environmental Law Center, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was wrong to designate the only wild Mexican gray wolf population in the United States as “nonessential” to the species’ survival. That designation, under Section 10(j) of the Endangered Species Act, limits protections for the wolves in Arizona and New Mexico, the very area the Service has identified as vital to recovery. With fewer than 400 Mexican gray wolves in the wild worldwide, conservationists argue the U.S. population is plainly essential. The court is expected to issue a written decision in the coming months.

Now New Mexico Wild is launching a petition to send at least 750 letters to members of Congress, one for every wolf scientists say true recovery requires. Anyone in the country can sign, and each letter goes to the signer’s own Senators and Representative, urging them to keep the lobo’s Endangered Species Act protections in place until recovery is complete.

“It is inconceivable that the only population of Mexican gray wolves in the United States could be considered nonessential to the species’ survival,” said Sally Paez, staff attorney for New Mexico Wild. “Our imperiled lobo population deserves more protections under the Endangered Species Act, not less. It would be reckless for Congress to prematurely decrease protections before Mexican gray wolves are truly recovered and able to withstand threats on their own. Pulling protections now would put decades of work at risk.”

About 317 Mexican gray wolves now live in the wild in the United States, but every one of them descends from just seven ancestors, leaving the population genetically vulnerable. The federal recovery plan does not consider a single year’s count enough to remove protections. Before delisting, the U.S. population must average at least 320 wolves over eight years and exceed 320 in each of the last three. A second population of at least 200 wolves must be established in Mexico, where only about 45 live today. Enough captive wolves must also be released to restore genetic diversity, and states must have protections in place against human-caused wolf deaths. Even downlisting the wolf from endangered to threatened requires a U.S. population averaging at least 320 wolves over four years, a standard the lobo has not met. And many independent scientists and conservation groups have long argued that even these goals fall short. Based on the best available science, true recovery requires at least 750 Mexican gray wolves across three interconnected populations, including new populations in the Grand Canyon region and the Southern Rockies.

Despite this, a September 4th executive order directed the Interior Department to decide within 90 days whether to begin delisting or downlisting the lobo. It also urged states to drop their own protections and loosen rules for killing wolves. Bills in Congress would go further and delist the wolf outright. Meanwhile, human-caused deaths remain the greatest threat to the species, and federal managers have authorized lethal removals over livestock conflicts this year.

Anyone can sign the petition HERE. Signers can also request a free “Wolves Belong” sticker as a thank you.

New Mexico Wild Staff Attorney Sally Paez is available for interviews on the court case, the executive order, and the status of Mexican gray wolf recovery.

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