Gray wolves off list in Minn., Mich., Wis.

ST. PAUL, Minn., Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Gray wolves have been taken off the U.S. endangered species list in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan.

The action puts wolf management in the hands of the states and of some Indian tribes, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported.

When the gray wolf or timber wolf was listed in 1974, the animal was almost extinct in Wisconsin and Michigan, while the population in Minnesota was a few hundred. Since then, the wolves have made a remarkable comeback with 3,020 in Minnesota, 460 in Wisconsin, 430 on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and 30 on Isle Royale, a national park in Lake Superior.

"Wolves have recovered in the western Great Lakes because efforts to save them from extinction have been a model of cooperation, flexibility and hard work," said Lynn Scarlett, deputy interior secretary.

The Interior Department also wants to remove gray wolves from the list in the Northern Rockies.