On October 29, 2020, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced their intent to strip gray wolves of Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections across the lower 48 states.

This decision comes despite robust opposition. In addition to the public’s 1.8 million comments, 86 members of Congress, 100 scientists, 230 businesses, and 367 veterinary professionals all submitted letters to the USFWS opposing the wolf delisting plan.

Why, exactly, is the plan flawed? Allow the experts to explain.

The scientific peer reviews written at the behest of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) expressed significant concerns regarding the scientific integrity of the proposed rule and the biological report on which it was intended to be based. Moreover, the peer review concluded that the proposal contained several scientific errors, omissions, and misinterpretations.

Dr. Carlos Carroll, one of the peer reviewers, recently appeared on an episode of BioScience Talks with coauthors Adrian Treves, Bridgett vonHoldt, and Dan Rohlf to discuss the recent USFWS action as well as prospects for gray wolf conservation.