Politics impedes lobo recovery

The lobo is the mascot of UNM, but New Mexico’s wild lobos have held a spot on the list of endangered species for several decades. Recently, statues of this wild animal are abundant throughout campus, but their presence in the wild remains precarious.

The Endangered Species Act is designed “to provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved, (and) to provide a program for the conservation of such endangered species.”

The Mexican gray wolf has a long history throughout the American West. Native to the southwestern states, the wolf was abundant in the wild prior to their decline caused by humans. Shooting, poisoning, trapping and a federal program of salaried government hunters were the main methods used to remove Mexican gray wolves to protect cows.

The population of Mexican gray wolves was reduced to seven, and their recovery has relied on the protection under the ESA. The species remains critically endangered, with only 83 remaining in both Arizona and New Mexico, representing the most endangered mammal in North America.

With the destruction of native wolf habitats and overall persecution by humans, wolves have struggled to survive in the wild. While ranchers argue that their livestock are at risk, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Board, less than 1 percent of cattle deaths on western lands can be attributed to wolves. Although the presence of wolves may appear detrimental to livestock, these iconic predatory animals are necessary to maintain ecosystem function, controlling herbivore populations and related plant communities.

As a top predator, the Mexican gray wolf needs to be protected for its critical role in maintaining healthy ecosystems in the Southwest. Politics should not take precedence over conservation of the species and preservation of these wild ecosystems.

On Thursday the New Mexico Game Commission voted to give itself the authority to control the housing of Mexican wolves and other carnivores on private lands used for reintroduction. With this clear attempt to impede Mexican gray wolf recovery, the Game Commission now can deny efforts of wolf reintroduction on private lands by prohibiting the use of individual pups raised in zoos as part of the bigger Mexican Gray Wolf Recovery effort.

This change shifts decision making away from the carefully-designed, science-based recovery plan toward a politically-backed agenda and creates a huge obstacle for conservation efforts already underway.

Wolf recovery, managed by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has been ongoing for nearly 40 years with only limited success due to constant political meddling. The recovery plan is critical to success, as it provides wildlife managers with a guide for successful reintroduction of UNM’s mascot. Granting control of an issue that should be in the hands of biologists to pay-to-play political appointees marks the obstruction of further reintroduction and sensible management of both present and future wolf populations.

Many lawsuits have been filed on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding overall mismanagement, and specifically the failure to draft a successful recovery plan for Mexican gray Wolves. Most recently, a lawsuit was filed by conservation organizations and lobo advocates including Defenders of Wildlife and the Center for Biological Diversity in response to the New Mexico Game Commission decision.

Iconic for both UNM and the American Southwest, the Mexican gray wolf belongs in the wild. This is a local issue that deserves the support of UNM’s Lobos.

Stephanie Mladinich is the president of the UNM Wilderness Alliance.