CALL TO ACTION: Speak Out Against the Togo Wolf Shooting

On August 23rd, after a court order had been obtained preventing the killing of a member of the Togo wolf pack, a rancher, using GPS data from the collared male in the pack, went to the rendezvous point  where wolves keep their pups. The rancher saw the male wolf and his pups. When the male wolf barked at the rancher, the rancher shot the wolf - alleging "self defense." The wolf know has a broken leg and will have difficulty living, much less providing for his pups as one of only two adults in the pack.

We need to demand an a full investigation. Please write to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), Director Kelly Susewind at this email address director@dfw.wa.gov and demand the following:

1) A full investigation by law enforcement into the rancher's actions

2) A full investigation by law enforcement into WDFW's communications with the rancher. Did they fail to tell the rancher to stay away from the rendezvous site? Did they instruct him as to typical wolf behavior if approached at a rendezvous site or den? The public needs to know what WDFW did and did not tell the rancher.

PUBLIC COMMENTS: Save the Endangered Species Act DUE SEPT 24

The Department of the Interior has proposed new regulations which would dramatically weaken the Endangered Species Act. Please leave a public comment opposing these regulations BEFORE MIDNIGHT ON SEPTEMBER 24. Leave your public comment HERE.


SAMPLE COMMENT FROM HSUS:

The proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act regulations by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service would weaken the ESA regulations by making it harder to secure and maintain federal protections for imperiled species. The FWS and NMFS should keep the existing ESA protections to save threatened and endangered animals from extinction.

SAMPLE COMMENT FROM XERCES SOCIETY:

 I strongly oppose the proposed rule changes to the Endangered Species Act proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Despite the claim from politicians that only a minority of species have recovered after endangered species listing, the fact is the Endangered Species Act is our nation’s most effective law for protecting wildlife in danger of extinction, and has prevented 99 percent of listed species from going extinct. Weakening the Act with the proposed changes will have dramatic implications for species conservation at a time when the threats to all species are increasing, and an increasing number of species are imperiled.

I especially oppose that listing decisions would be coupled with a study on the economic impacts (not benefits) to listing the species. An economic impact analysis could easily influence listing decisions, not to mention be a waste of taxpayer funds.

The Endangered Species Act is a hallmark piece of legislation that has had tremendous benefits for this nation’s iconic wildlife. The proposed changes to the ESA would weaken the law, change the clearly stated and intended purpose of the law, and have negative lasting impacts on our environment for future generations. For these reasons, I strongly oppose the suggested changes.

SAMPLE COMMENT FROM HOWLING FOR WOLVES: 

1. Give economic impact over consideration in decisions about protecting wildlife. Species listing decisions are currently made based solely on scientific considerations–as it should be. The new rules will give veto power to specialist interests over protecting endangered animals.
2. Make it much more difficult to protect plants, fish, and wildlife impacted by the effects of climate change. Species such as wolverines or lynx that are now losing their fight against a warming world will continue to be denied protections;
3. Put enormous roadblocks in the way of protecting habitat needed by endangered and threatened species;
4. Weaken the longstanding requirement that federal agencies work with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to assure that projects do not hurt or kill endangered species;
5. Drastically weaken protections afforded to species designated as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Florida manatees, gray wolves in Minnesota, marbled murrelets, and hundreds of others could face new threats.
6. States can open hunting and trapping seasons to kill these animals if Zinke's plan is enacted.

PETITIONS: Please sign and share the following public comments from conservation groups. (updated Sept 10)

Center for Biological Diversity
Audubon Society
National Anti-Vivisection Society
Sierra Club
Animal Welfare Institute
Endangered Species Coalition
Greater Yellowstone Coalition
Oceana
Defenders of Wildlife
League of Conservation Voters
EarthJustice
National Wildlife Federation
Ocean Conservancy 
IFAW
Wilderness Watch
Environment California
Audubon Society 
WildEarth Guardians
Oregon Wild
Greater Yellowstone Coalition
Food and Water Action
NRDC

Public Comments: Save Red Wolves from Extinction DUE JULY 30

Photo from USFWS

Submit your public comments HERE. If you write them elsewhere and save them, they can also be sent as an email to your Members of Congress or as a letter to the editor of a local paper. Public comments are DUE JULY 30 before midnight.

Talking Points can be found HERE and HERE.

PETITIONS:
Please also sign and share the following petitions.

Animal Welfare Institute
Endangered Species Coalition
Friends of the Earth
Environmental Action
Defenders
Center for Biological Diversity

CLICK TO TWEET:

.@Interior @SecretaryZinke your plan to reduce endangered red wolf habitat is a surrender to extinction and a betrayal of his responsibilities under the Endangered Species Act is outrageous. #redwolfbetrayal pic.twitter.com/Bgwg4e5Rg7

.@USFWS announced their plan today to cut red wolf habitat by 90% and allow private landowners to kill wolves that wander onto their property. #disgraceful #stopextinction #firezinke #redwolfbetrayal pic.twitter.com/b6zNg0j2Qt

Tell the Senate to Pass a Clean Farm Bill

Last week, the House passed a disastrous Farm Bill. The bill is a massive giveaway to the pesticide industry and a blow to endangered species. Many say that it would be the final nail in the coffin for many species. The House version of the bill:

• Repeals the Clean Water Rule’s safeguards for critical water bodies, including streams that help supply one-third of Americans with drinking water.
• Exempts companies that spray dangerous pesticides into waterways from Clean Water Act permitting requirements.
• “Poisoned Pollinators Provision” exempts dangerous pesticides from protections to safeguard endangered or threatened species, including some species of bees.
• Exempts chemical makers from enforcement when pesticides harm or kill endangered species. (Read more here.)
• Prohibits local governments from adopting pesticide laws that are more protective than federal rules and gives state pesticide agencies a secret chance to block EPA protections. 
• Exempts public lands from important land, wildlife, and water conservation safeguards.
• Disallows states from enforcing their own laws against out of state products that are dangerous or unsanitary.

CONTACT YOUR SENATORS AND ASK THEM FOR A CLEAN FARM BILL without any poison pills or damaging environmental riders. Contact information can be found HERE.

SIGN AND SHARE THESE PETITIONS:

Sierra Club
Humane Society

PUBLIC COMMENTS: #SaveStumpy and the Wild Horses of Muddy Creek DUE MAY 20

Speak out for Stumpy and the wild horses of Muddy Creek! BLM is planning to round up these horses to make way for cattle. Please submit your public comments BY MAY 20 .

EMAIL YOUR PUBLIC COMMENTS: blm_ut_pr_whb@blm.gov.  Write: 'Muddy Creek Wild Horse Gather Plan EA' in the subject line

WHAT TO SAY:

- 210,000 acres were lost when BLM merged Sinbad and Muddy Creek HMAs in 2008. Those 210,000 acres should be returned to wild horses. 

- Follow §4710.5 of the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burro Act of 1971, which pertains to the closure of (legally designated) wild horse and burro herd area for livestock grazing. It states in part that, "if necessary to provide habitat for wild horses and burros from disease, harassment or injury, the authorized officer may close appropriate areas of the public lands to grazing use by all or a particular kind of livestock." Grazing on public lands is a privilege, not a right. 

- Follow advice from geneticist Dr. Gus Cothran regarding maintaining genetic viability. Managing wild horses at low population levels leaves them vulnerable to a long range loss of genetic diversity. Per geneticist, Gus Cothran, the minimum wild horse and burro herd size is 150-200 animals. The AML recommendation of 75-125 will destroy the herd over time.

- There should be no roundups or use of PZP until BLM proves that there is overpopulation of wild horses.

- How many cattle are on the public lands at issue? If only 195 wild horses are allowed on 283,400 acres? Will only a similar number of cattle be permitted? How does BLM ensure that ranchers accurately report the correct number of livestock?

- There should be an absolute ban on removing horses between foaling season which is between March and June.


SIGN AND SHARE THESE PETITIONS:

American Wild Horse Campaign

SPREAD THE WORD ON SOCIAL MEDIA: 

TWITTER: Retweet this account: Freedom4Horses
INSTAGRAM: DontDelistGrizzlies

CALL TO ACTION: Protect the Arctic (Energy and Natural Resources Committee)

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will vote on November 15th to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil and gas drilling. If your Senator is a member of this committee, you urgently need to contact him or her. Make sure when you contact them you inform them that you live in the State.  Please be clear and polite when commenting. 

Comment: "I oppose opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling for oil or gas".

Lisa Murkowski, Chairman, Alaska

Republican Committee Members

John Barrasso, Wyoming

James E. Risch,Idaho

Mike Lee,Utah

Jeff Flake, Arizona

Steve Daines. Montana

Cory Gardner, Colorado

Lamar Alexander, Tennessee

John Hoeven, North Dakota

Bill Cassidy, Louisiana

Rob Portman, Ohio

Luther Strange, Alabama

Ranking Member Maria Cantwell, Washington

Democratic Committee Members

Ron Wyden,Oregon

Bernard Sanders, Vermont

Debbie Stabenow, Michigan

Al Franken, Minnesota

Joe Manchin III, West Virginia 

Martin Heinrich, New Mexico

Mazie K. Hirono, Hawaii

Angus S. King, Jr., Maine

Tammy Duckworth, Illinois 

Catherine Cortez Masto, Nevada

PHONE CALLS, EMAILS: Contact information HERE.  

RESISTBOT: Text 504-09 and type RESIST. The ResistBot will convert your texts to faxes to your Senators and representative.

FACEBOOK: Leave comments on existing posts telling your Senator that you OPPOSE drilling in the Arctic and that you are a constituent.

TWITTER: Tweet Sheet is HERE

PETITION: Sign and share
NRDC
Join the movement SavetheArtic.org

CALL TO ACTION: Defend the Endangered Species Act

The GOP Congress is making progress in their attacks on the Endangered Species Act with five bills poised to be voted on in the House of Representatives. See this recent article in the Washington post. We need to make sure that our Members of Congress know how important we believe this legislation is!

EMAIL: Contact forms for Senators HERE, for your Representative HERE. Write, in your own words, why you want the Endangered Species Act to remain intact or copy and paste the following:

I am concerned by the 5 bills recently passed through the House National Resources Committee which would weaken or repeal the Endangered Species Act. This law has saved countless species from extinction, including our national bird, the bald eagle. Further, it has a proven track record and process that should not be circumvented or short-circuited. The decision to save a species should be a purely scientific one and should not consider economic impact. We are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction and need to preserve the best tool available to us to slow down the loss of species. Please fight to keep this bedrock of our environmental protection strong. 

POSTCARDS (OR LETTERS):

Send a postcard to the following individuals:
- Your Two Senators (Find their contact info HERE; send to a DISTRICT office)
- Your Representative (Find contact info HERE, send to a DISTRICT office))

In your postcards, identify yourself as a constituent (include your city so they can verify). Write one to three sentences asking your member of Congress to oppose all bills that weaken or repeal the Endangered Species Act. Maybe draw a picture of an animal or plant.

TWEET: Tweet sheet is HERE

CALL: Find your Senators' phone numbers HERE and your Representative's phone numbers HERE. It is best to call one of the local offices, rather than the DC office. Tell the staff member who answers  that you want your legislator to oppose all efforts to weaken or repeal the Endangered Species Act. (** BONUS: save these numbers in your phone contacts to make it easier to call in the future)

FACEBOOK MESSAGES: Find your Senator's Facebook page HERE. Google your Representative's Facebook page. Leave a comment to an existing article saying the following:

I support the Endangered Species Act. Please oppose all efforts to weaken or repeal it. 

SIGN AND SHARE THESE PETITIONS:

Endangered Species Coalition
Defenders of Wildlife
Audubon Society
American Bird Conservancy


TEXT-TO-FAX THROUGH RESISTBOT: Text 504-09 and type RESIST. The ResistBot will convert your texts to faxes to your Senators and representative. Please send a text to your Members of Congress asking them to defend the Endangered Species Act and oppose all bills that threaten to weaken it, including bills that weigh economic impact of saving a species.

INSTAGRAM: Follow us on Instagram and re-gram our posts. (@ecouprising2016)
TWITTER: Follow us on Twitter and re-tweet our posts. (@ecouprising2016)

CALL TO ACTION: VOTE NO HR 424 WAR ON WOLVES

Gray Wolf State Management Act of 2017

HR 424 is a bill that requires the Department of the Interior to reissue two rules that removed protections under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 for the gray wolf populations located in Wyoming and the western Great Lakes (all of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota, as well as portions of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio). In addition, this bill prohibits judicial review of the reissued rules.

H.R. 424 will set the stage for trophy hunters and commercial trappers to kill grey wolves.   This bill is a war on wolves and anti-wolf legislation disregards our government’s system of checks and balances by blocking citizens from using federal courts to challenge this politically-motivated and unscientific action by Congress.

Tweet: Please quote THIS TWEET and then tag your Representative (find his or her Twitter ID HERE) and ask him or her to vote NO. 

Tweet sheet is HERE.

Email/Phone Calls : Take Action calling and emailing your Representative

Contact forms for your Representative HERE. Write, in your own words, why you want him or her to vote NO on HR 424 or copy and paste the following:

I am your constituent. Please oppose H.R. 424  which would expose wolves in four states to cruel trophy hunting without judicial review of the reissued rules."

PETITIONS TO SIGN:

https://www.thepetitionsite.com/413/107/388/oppose-the-war-on-wolves-bill-hr-424/

http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/o/51421/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=23134

https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=7301

http://www.bornfreeusa.org/legislation.php?p=5921&more=1

https://www.change.org/p/paul-ryan-stop-hr-424-it-will-remove-federal-protection-for-gray-wolves-in-mn-wi-mi-and-wy

Campaign for Yellowstone's Wolves

Sign this petition below and take the Tourist Pledge to cut your spending in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming until these states end trophy hunting and trapping of Yellowstone National Park wolves

https://www.thepetitionsite.com/488/206/287/stop-yellowstone-wolf-hunting-with-your-tourist-dollars/

INSTAGRAM: Follow us on Instagram and re-gram our posts (@ecouprising2016)

CALL TO ACTION: Save Our Forests! NO on HR2936

Action needed. The House Agricultural Committee just approved the "Resilient Federal Forests Act (HR2936) and it could go to a full House vote any day. This legislation sets arbitrary limits on the Endangered Species Act, overrides Cascade-Siskiyou's National Monument status, permits a huge number of logging projects to go forward without environmental review and much much more. We cannot let this happen to our national forests! Please stand with conservation groups in the region to demand a NO VOTE.

Please make sure that your representative knows that we value our forests, our national monuments and the Endangered Species Act. Please ask them to VOTE NO on HR2936.

EMAILS: Contact forms for your Representative HERE. Write, in your own words, why you want him or her to vote NO on HR2936 or copy and paste the following:

I urge you to VOTE NO ON HR2936 (The Resilient Federal Forests Act). This law would put our forests at risk to clearcutting, circumvents the Endangered Species Act, threatens biodiversity and watersheds, and threatens National Monuments by rescinding that designation for the Cascade-Siskiyou monument. I care about our national forests as an avid hiker, wildlife watcher and photographer. Please VOTE NO ON HR2936.

PHONE CALLS: Find your Representative's phone numbers HERE. Tell the staffer who answers that you expect a NO VOTE on HR2936, the Resilient Federal Forests Act.

RESISTBOT: Text 504-09 and type RESIST. The ResistBot will convert your texts to faxes to your Senators and representative. Please send a text to your Representative asking for a NO VOTE on HR2936 or copy and paste the following:

I urge you to VOTE NO ON HR2936 (The Resilient Federal Forests Act). This law would put our forests at risk to clearcutting, circumvents the Endangered Species Act, threatens biodiversity and watersheds, and threatens National Monuments by rescinding that designation for the Cascade-Siskiyou monument. I care about our national forests as an avid hiker, wildlife watcher and photographer. Please VOTE NO ON HR2936.

PETITIONS:
Wilderness Watch
EarthJustice
Cascadia Wildlands

INSTAGRAM: Follow us on Instagram and re-gram our posts (@ecouprising2016)
TWITTER: Quote THIS TWEET (@ecouprising2016) and tag your Representative.

CALL TO ACTION: Stop the SHARE Act

The House is expected to vote on the Sportsmen’s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement Act, or  SHARE Act, this week. This bill would delist wolves permanently and prohibit bans of lead ammunition or fishing gear - among other disastrous impacts to wildlife  Please take the following actions to ensure that your Representative votes NO on the SHARE Act.

CALL: Find your Representative's phone number HERE and tell him or her to VOTE NO ON THE SHARE ACT (HR 3668). 

EMAIL: Find your Representative's contact form HERE. Tell him or her in your own words to oppose the SHARE Act or copy and paste the following:

Please vote NO on the SHARE Act, HR 3668. This law would undermine the Endangered Species Act by legislatively delisting gray wolves in the Great Lakes permanently. This would preclude judicial review and also prevent the USFWS from ever re-listing the wolves if science indicated that they had become endangered. This is a recipe for extinction.

The SHARE Act would also expand trapping which is an indiscriminate and barbaric method for killing wildlife. Expanded trapping not only increases the number of wildlife that would suffer needlessly and cruelly but it increases the odds that non-target wildlife, including endangered species, as well as family pets could be trapped.

Finally, this terrible bill would ban any regulation of lead ammunition or fishing gear, both of which are responsible for poisoning birds and wildlife by the millions each year. 

The SHARE Act has been through Congress many times and has always been rejected. Please make sure that the House rejects this very bad bill again. PLEASE VOTE NO ON HR3668, THE SHARE ACT.

RESISTBOT: Text 504-09 and type RESIST. The ResistBot will convert your texts to faxes or mailed letters to your Representative. Write your own message asking your Representative to vote NO On HR3668 (The Share Act) or copy and paste the message above.

TWEET SHEET: HERE

SIGN AND SHARE PETITIONS:
Endangered Species Coalition
Defenders of Wildlife
International Fund for Animal Welfare
Humane Society
CalWild
Wilderness Watch

CALL TO ACTION: Public Comments on the Clean Water Rule

The EPA is seeking to repeal the Clean Water rule of 2015, which clarifies which streams and wetlands qualify for protection under the Clean Water Act. This proposed repeal threatens drinking water for 1 in 3 Americans as well as millions of acres of important habitat for fish, birds and other wildlife. 

Public comments must be submitted by September 27. Public comments have repeatedly been shown to be one of the most impactful actions an advocate can take.  Public comments slow down the roll back of regulation, buying us time, and provide fodder for lawsuits. Please take five minutes to speak up for clean water! Directions on how to comment and what to say below:

COMMENTS DUE BY SEPTEMBER 27, 2017 at 11PM EDT.  Please prepare your comment in a document where you can save it. Once it is complete, submit your comment HERE and please also email it to your Senators (contact info HERE) and to your representative (contact info HERE).

WHAT TO SAY:

Thank you for accepting comments on Docket Number EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203 which would repeal the 2015 Clean Water Rule. I write because I strongly oppose repeal of this rule.

Repeal of this rule would impact drinking water for 117 million Americans. Clean and safe drinking water is a basic human right. Unsafe drinking water can have wide-ranging health impacts, ranging from cancer to serious birth defects, and is simply not worth the risk. We ALL suffer when American communities do not have access to clean and safe drinking water.

Repeal of this rule would threaten habitat for wildlife by redefining "waters of the United States" to exclude wetlands, headwaters and some ponds. There are about 110 million acres of wetlands affected and 60% of US stream miles - all of which provide critical habitat for birds and wildlife. The outdoor recreation economy is worth $887 billion each year and repeal of this rule puts that industry at risk.

Repeal of this rule would put at risk millions of acres of wetlands. Healthy wetlands reduce the risk of flooding. The storms that we experienced this summer and the ongoing sea level rise drive home the importance of maintaining wetlands to absorb flood waters. Lives are literally at risk when we do not protect wetlands.

ADD YOUR PERSONAL STORY. FOR EXAMPLE:

• I LIVE NEAR A FLOOD ZONE AND RELY ON HEALTHY WETLANDS TO REDUCE MY PERSONAL RISK OF FLOODING. 
• AS A LOVER OF WILDLIFE or AS SOMEONE WHO FISHES, IT IS IMPORTANT TO ME THAT WE MAINTAIN SAFE HABITAT TO PROTECT OUR BIODIVERSITY. 
• SHARE ANY HEALTH ISSUES YOU OR A FAMILY MEMBER OR FRIEND HAVE THAT MIGHT BE IMPACTED BY LACK OF ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER 

TWEETS:

.@EPAScottPruitt Drinking water of 1 in 3 Americans depends on continued enforcement of WOTUS. #cleanwaterforall pic.twitter.com/ZGIgsRGhFM

.@EPAScottPruitt WOTUS rule protects 110 acres of critical habitat for birds, wildlife. Don't abandon clean water pic.twitter.com/XE6mvEbnvM

.@EPAScottPruitt As an American who drinks water, I demand that you continue to enforce 2015 Clean Water Rule! pic.twitter.com/zJYSji9Wm2

Public comments to protect clean water for 1 in 3 Americans, million of habitat DUE SEPT 27 http://bit.ly/2v9CIPe pic.twitter.com/Ooro7fX8Sp

PLEASE SIGN AND SHARE THESE PETITIONS:
Sierra Club
EarthJustice
American Rivers
Friends of the Earth
Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
Environmental Action
Credo Action
Earthworks
National Park Action Fund
American Rivers

CALL TO ACTION: 5 Democrats Vote to Kill Baby Bears and Wolves

Alaska's Don Young is up to his old tricks! Along with insulting his female colleagues, Young is once again pushing his agenda of unethical hunting practices on federal lands. Most recently, the House of Representatives passed - with the help of 5 Democrats! - an amendment to repeal an Obama rule against abhorrent hunting practices on National Park Service lands in Alaska. These practices include: killing entire wolf packs during denning season, using artificial lights to kill hibernating black bear mothers and their cubs, killing grizzly bear families over baits, chasing black bears with packs of trailing hounds.

If you are a constituent of one of the Democrats who supported this awful amendment (Collin Peterson of MN, Gene Green of TX, Ron Kind of WI, Henry Culler of TX, Vicente Gonzalez of TX) please call or email them to express your disgust.

Everyone else:

TWITTER:
* Please note that the 5th Democrat, Collin Peterson of the 7th District in Minnesota, does not have an active Twitter account. 

Never forget that Dem .@RepGeneGreen voted to kill hibernating bear cubs, wolf families in dens on federal lands! pic.twitter.com/2WyDi1HZ2X

What sort of Democrat votes to kill hibernating bear cubs, kill entire wolf packs in dens? Shame on .@RepCuellar pic.twitter.com/93AcYyHPZ3

Faux Democrat .@RepGonzalez voted to kill hibernating bear cubs, wolf families in their dens on federal lands! pic.twitter.com/2WyDi1HZ2X

Democratic values of .@RepRonKind don't extend to wildlife. He voted to kill baby bears & wolves on federal land. pic.twitter.com/2WyDi1HZ2X

FACEBOOK:

Henry Cuellar
Vicente Gonzalez
Gene Green
Ron Kind
* Collin Peterson also does not have a Facebook page.

Leave the following comment or one in your own words (but please keep it civil):

I am extremely disappointed by your vote in support of Young Amendment 43 to HR3354 to allow the killing of wolf families in their dens as well as the killing of hibernating bear mothers and cubs. The amendment would also permit hounding of black bears and baiting of grizzly bears. All of this would be permitted on our federal public lands. I cannot believe a Democrat would support such abhorrent practices and will work to ensure constituents remember such a heartless vote.

CALL TO ACTION: Public Comments to Save Mexican Gray Wolves

Public comments due August 29, 2017 at 11:59PM EDT. Electronic comments submitted HERE. Please compose your comment somewhere that it can be saved in the event of an issue with the electronic comment page.

WHAT TO SAY:

• There are fewer than 150 Mexican wolves in the wild and only 250 in captivity. 
• Mexican wolf populations in the United States and Mexico are isolated. The lack of connectivity and the low numbers of each isolated population (which should number at least 200 individuals with a total of 750 wolves) threatens the species with extinction. 
• The proposed plan would turn over management of these rare wolves to state game boards. The last time states were in charge of lobos, the wolf population plummeted due to excessive trapping and shooting of Mexican wolves, authorized by state game boards.
• State game boards are comprised of political appointees who usually do not have a background in science or conservation. Rather, these appointees usually come from ranching or hunting background. 
• USFWS and not state game boards should be in charge of whether and when to release Mexican wolves from captivity to boost the genetic viability of the population.
• There should be a plan to discourage conflicts with livestock and lobos and provide education to promote tolerance of the animals within their habitat. To achieve such social tolerance, there needs to be a commitment to funding non-lethal deterrents and work on a holistic plan with local livestock operations to reduce conflict between wolves and livestock and yet maintain a healthy wolf population. Further, lethal control cannot be a solution. If it is, livestock operators will likely never embrace tolerance and use of non-lethal methods. 

PETITIONS (Please Sign and Share)

Endangered Species Coalition

EarthJustice

Defenders of Wildlife

TWEET SECRETARY ZINKE AND DEPT OF INTERIOR:

Less than 150 Mexican wolves in wild, .@Interior! Keep protected by feds, not state game board #SaveMexicanWolves pic.twitter.com/FtiOWpR8h9

Only 150 Mexican wolves in wild, .@SecretaryZinke Americans want you to #SaveMexicanWolves; keep protected! pic.twitter.com/FtiOWpR8h9