WASHINGTON, July 16 (UPI) -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Friday said gray wolves are no longer endangered in Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin.
The population in those three states has surpassed the criteria set out in the original species' recovery plan, the service said in a release. All three states have management plans in place to help maintain the species' future survival.
"Today we celebrate not only the remarkable comeback of the gray wolf, but the partnerships, dedicated efforts and spirit of conservation that have made this success story possible," Interior Secretary Gale Norton said in a release.
The service is proposing the removal of gray wolves from the Endangered Species list in the Eastern U.S., from the Dakotas to the East Coast and as far south as Missouri.
Wolf populations in the Western and Southwestern Population Segments would still remain protected under the Endangered Species Act.
