ORAt-TKLSAl'i'KNOIX I 



1987). Enforceable wildlife conservation would finally begin with the political and financial support of Montana 

 hunters and anglers early in the 20'*' century. Early programs emphasized restoring game animals and aggressive 

 predator control. Even still, the Montana Legislature classified the grizzly bear as a game animal in I92.S so it could 

 be protected from predator control programs - 50 years before there was an Endangered .Species Act. I'he mountain 

 lion was classified as a game animal in 1971 — 2 years before ESA. Lion restoration was assured, not by the legal 

 protections of ESA, but by the regulation of human-caused mortality and the restoration of prey populations. These 

 successful programs were then, and, are now sustained by a philosophy of public hunting and a funding base from 

 participants. These were imbedded in Montana culture starting with the earliest territorial residents. 



Present day populations of white-tailed deer and elk are at their highest levels recorded in recent history. Mule deer 

 numbers fluctuated over the last 20 years, but the statewide population is still robust. The sportsmen and women of 

 Montana shepherded the restoration of those populations from all time lows. Because of their long-term financial 

 investments and willingness to restrict themselves when necessary, Montanans now enjoy relatively liberal hunting 

 seasons for more ungulate species than other western states. TTie restoration of native ungulate populations to 

 former (and new) habitats and in large numbers facilitated wolf restoration. It is a rich heritage of which Montanans 

 can be proud. 



Legal Status and Classification under Montana Statutes 



At present, USFWS and WS are responsible for wolf restoration and management activities. Federal laws provide 

 guidance. When wolves are delisted and management authority is transferred to the State of Montana, state laws 

 become the primary regulatory and legal mechanisms guiding management. Two Titles within Montana statutes 

 describe the legal status and management framework for wolves. Title 87 pertains to fish and wildlife species and 

 oversight by MFWP. Title 81 pertains to the Montana Department of Livestock (MDOL) and their responsibilities 

 related to predator control. Most recently, the 2001 Montana Legislature passed Senate Bill 163 (SB 163), which 

 amended several statutes in both Titles. Governor Martz signed SB 163 on April 21, 2001. The text of SB 163 is 

 presented in Appendix 2. 



For now, the gray wolf remains listed as an endangered species under the Montana Nongame and Endangered 

 Species Conservation Act of 1973 (87-5-101 MCA). The USFWS anticipates that wolf populations in the northern 

 Rocky Mountains will meet the recovery goals in the near future. At that time, the USFWS will initiate the federal 

 delisting process. Provisions in SB 163 automatically remove the gray wolf from the state endangered species Hst, 

 concurrent with federal action concluding that wolves are no longer endangered. Separate action by the Montana 

 Legislature is not required, but MFWP would still need to update its Administrative Rule 12.5.201 , which lists state 

 threatened and endangered species. 



Once removed from the state endangered species list, the gray wolf will automatically be classified as a species "in 

 need of management." MP^P and the MF-WP Commission will then establish the regulatory framework to manage 

 the species (MCA 87-5-101 to 87-5-123). "Management" is defined in MCA 87-5-102 as: 



"the collection and application of biological information for the purposes of increasing the number of individuals 

 within species and populations of wildlife, up to the optimum carrying capacity of their habitat, and 

 maintaining such levels. The tenn includes the entire range of activities that constitute a modem 

 scientific resource program including but not hmited to research, census, law enforcement, habitat 

 improvement, and education. Also included within the term, when and where appropriate, is the 

 periodic or total protection of species or populations as well as regulated taking." 



In Montana statute, "take" means to "harass, hunt, capture, or kill or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill 

 wildlife." Thus, MPWP'and the MFWP Commission will establish the management parameters and regulations that 

 limit taking, possession, transportation, exportation, processing, sale, offer for sale, or shipment of wolves. In 

 addition, MFWP and the MP'WP Commission will initiate the law enforcement, population monitoring, educational 

 components, and other elements of a wolf program. 



When MFWP and the MFWP Commission determine that the wolf population no longer fits the definition of a 

 species "in need of management," the MFWP Commission may reclassify the wolf as a big game animal or a 

 furbearer when wolf numbers have increased to the point where population regulation is needed. Regulated public 



