Federal District Court Judge Dana Christensen has ordered the federal government to conduct a new analysis of its work to prevent bear-human conflicts — including looking at the bears killed outside of recovery areas. That’s due November 1, of 2026.
Wildlife Services, a division within the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is responsible for removing animals that get into conflict with humans. Those removals often involve killing the animal.
Wildlife advocacy groups Trap Free Montana, WildEarth Guardians, and Western Watersheds Project sued the program in 2023, saying its environmental assessment did not sufficiently examine how killing a bear affects the overall population. The court agreed.
The groups estimate Wildlife Services kills an average of 10 grizzly bears in Montana every year.
Wildlife managers agree that connectivity, or the ability for bears to move from one subpopulation to another, is a key component of a successful recovery.
Grizzlies are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act.
Separate from this case, the U.S. Department of the Interior is expected to make a decision on delisting two grizzly subpopulations in early 2025.
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Last week, President Trump released an order to freeze all kinds of federal rules proposed in the days before the Administration changed, including the latest grizzly bear delisting rule. The Trump Administration is reviewing what Biden tried to do with grizzlies, and deciding what’s next. -
The USFWS had scheduled public hearings on the decision for Missoula, Coeur D’Alene, Cody and online this week. In a statement, the agency wrote the meetings were cancelled while the new presidential administration reviews the proposal. -
Grizzly bears in the lower 48 will remain protected as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act, federal officials announced Wednesday. -
A new conservation agreement west of Lolo will permanently protect a stretch of habitat that could help connect isolated grizzly bear populations. -
In January, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is expected to decide whether some populations of grizzly bears should be removed from federal protections and be managed by the states.
