Following six hours of heated debate and several amendments, Montana’s Fish and Wildlife Commission Thursday passed new regulations for the upcoming wolf hunting and trapping season.
Changes this year include a statewide quota of 452 wolves. That’s 118 more than last year. In years past, quotas have been set for each of the seven regions the state is divided into.
But Commissioners decided to do away with those distinctions this year for all but Region 3, which encompasses southwest Montana. Commissioner Susan Brooke said her region requires a unique approach because of the economic value of wolves in Yellowstone National Park.
"I have hundreds and hundreds of people who have written letters, who have businesses, who are agriculture based, that are asking us to leave region three at the existing quota."
Brooke said a statewide quota would kill even more wolves in an area already facing declines. She said Region 3 has seen a 35% decline in the wolf population in recent years.
The Commission passed a 60 wolf quota for Region 3, with additional limits on the number of wolves that can be killed in the areas bordering Yellowstone Park.
Public comment and debate over these changes went on for hours with more than 70 people weighing in. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has continued to increase wolf hunting and trapping quotas since the 2021 Legislature directed the agency to cut the population by 40%.
For some in the room, this year’s arguments felt like a resurrected fight. In the 2025 legislative session lawmakers debated proposals to manage wolves statewide, and reduce the population by half. Those bills failed.
Several lawmakers attended the meeting, including Republican Rep. Shannon Manness of Dillon, who carried one of the failed bills. Manness said the commission must do more to reduce wolf populations
"I encourage you to do pass this – even though I don’t believe it’s strong enough – you're going to have to work, we're going to be back in '27. We are not getting the desired results," Manness said.
Karrie Kahle, from the Park County Environmental Council expressed frustration with the process after she and other Park County groups fought against the bills carried by Manness and other lawmakers this session.
"It feels like we're giving those legislators whose bills went down a second bite at the apple." Kahle said. "And I don't think we should be doing that again."
Opponents of these changes say killing this many wolves warrants Endangered Species Act protections. The new state regulations passed just weeks after a court ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reassess threats facing wolves.
