On Tuesday, the Pacific Legal Foundation filed a lawsuit challenging the California Fish and Game Commission’s (Commission) 2015 decision to list the gray wolf as endangered under the California Endangered Species Act (Act). The lawsuit, filed in California Superior Court on behalf of the California Cattlemen’s Association and the California Farm Bureau Federation, challenges the listing based on the Commission’s lack of sound scientific basis for the action, as well as the notion that the gray wolf is not covered under the Act because it is not a historically native species in California. The species is generally considered a threat to livestock, and the listing severely hinders the ability of ranchers to manage livestock depredation as the wolf population expands.
The Commission’s position on the gray wolf has been controversial since it was first declared a candidate for listing in 2012 after OR-7, the first gray wolf to appear in California since 1924, migrated into the state from Oregon. Since that time, other gray wolves have migrated into California from Oregon and established packs, but the species is not considered native to California, and is flourishing and increasing in numbers nationally. Before the species was considered for listing, stakeholders, including ranchers, farmers, and County Agricultural Commissioners from several RCRC member counties, spent months working with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife on the Conservation Plan for Gray Wolves, a plan for management of the species in the state, which many feel is now worthless because of the listing.
Detailed information on the case, including the full complaint and related documents, can be accessed here.