Trump orders removal of grey wolf endangered species protections

September 5, 2026 at 02:12 PM2 min

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President Donald Trump signed an executive order to remove endangered species protections for grey wolves and Mexican wolves. The order directs Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to determine within 90 days whether the populations have recovered enough for delisting. Conservation groups criticized the move, citing decades of recovery efforts.

Key Facts

Trump's executive order gives Interior Secretary Doug Burgum 90 days to determine whether grey and Mexican wolf populations have recovered enough to be delisted.
There were 319 Mexican wolves in the wild in the US in 2025, up from four in 1998, according to US Fish and Wildlife Service figures.
Roughly 18,000 grey wolves live across the US, though they are still considered endangered due to habitat destruction.
Ranchers are entitled to up to 100% compensation for livestock losses caused by wolves under the current system.
The executive order notes US livestock herds are at a 75-year low while beef demand rose 10% in the past decade.

Executive Order Details

The order does not give ranchers immediate license to shoot wolves preying on livestock. It directs Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to determine within 90 days whether the grey and Mexican wolf populations have recovered enough to warrant removal from the endangered species list. The order states that ranchers play a vital role in the food supply chain and American cultural heritage. It also notes that US livestock herds are at a 75-year low while demand for beef has risen by 10% in the past decade.

Conservation Opposition

Conservation groups criticized the move, saying it could derail long-term efforts to recover endangered wolf populations. Greta Anderson, deputy director of Western Watersheds Project, called the order a distraction to placate a handful of ranchers. Claire Musser, executive director of the Grand Canyon Wolf Recovery Project, said the Mexican grey wolf is not recovered simply because the population has grown. The Wolf Conservation Center noted that ranchers are entitled to up to 100% compensation for livestock losses caused by wolves under the current system.

Wolf Population Status

There were 319 Mexican wolves in the wild in the US in 2025, up from just four when they were reintroduced in 1998, according to US Fish and Wildlife Service figures. Roughly 18,000 grey wolves live across the US, though they are still considered endangered as most of their habitat has been destroyed by humans. An attempt to de-list grey wolves at the federal level in 2022 became tied up in litigation. Some campaigners have indicated they intend to do the same if the US Department of Interior acts on Trump's order.