by Stephen Capra, Executive Director, Bold Visions Conservation | 09 February 2025
We live in a time most of us could never have fathomed; a president dedicated to the destruction of wildlife and our wildest public lands, and a Montana legislature wanting desperately to return the State to its 1870s roots with the destruction of wolves as their focal point.
So how do we change this? If there is one thing republicans have taught us, it is that you must have a vision along with the patience to see it through.
Currently, Representative Paul Fielder (R) of Thompson Falls has devoted himself to the torture and destruction of wolves. Period. For the past three or four legislative sessions, Fielder has pushed for numerous house bills with the aim of destroying Montana wolves as well as grizzly bears. He is likely behind the republican talking points on so-called ‘hybrid’ wolves in Montana, wolves more savage and with larger teeth.
Trapper and trophy hunter Montana Governor Gianforte, is busy making similar false claims. Collectively, the governors of Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana have made it clear to President Trump that he must delist wolves across the country. The sooner the better. Colorado Congresswoman and Representative Laura Bobert, coupled with her strong desire for the slaughter of wolves, has a bill aimed at delisting wolves nationally.
Billings Representative (R) Jodee Etchart brags about the “[Wolves], smoke a pack a day” bumper sticker on her car. This callousness is unacceptable, she needs to hear from all of us!
How did this all come to be after the release of wolves into Yellowstone in 1995? Even before their release, ranchers were up in arms and many in the conservation community foolish enough to think they could work with livestock interests. While thankfully some ranchers understand that they can co-existence with wolves and other wild predators, far too many behave that it’s like the civil war; their predecessors eliminated wolves, and it is an insult for the government to bring them back. Those wallowing in such ignorance only feel emboldened by the fool currently running our country.
Project 2025 is eager to sow the seeds of destroying wilderness and key wildlife species, think apex predators like wolves and grizzly bears. They have garnered the support of rural livestock producers, their communities, and those enjoying the largess of government subsidies. Yet they also take every opportunity to bash Big Government. And simply, democrats have squandered their power to allow for wolf recovery, while those like former Montana Senator Tester worked to delist wolves in the northern Rockies for his reelection hopes and personal gain.
What must change?
It begins with conservation groups aligning and collaborating in their fight for wolf recovery. Without this cooperation, wolves will not have a united front working hard for them. Some groups compromise, others refuse to collaborate or cooperate. Major conservation groups use wolves as fundraisers, making money off the backs of wolves.
In Montana, legislators need to hear from us all year, every day, week, and month. Democrats must pick up more seats to slow the energy that is pushing for the eradication of wolves. Those same democrats must agree to support sustainable wolf recovery, and we will seek out those republicans willing to do the same. We must all be willing to meet with representatives following current legislative sessions and demand far more for the 2027 session. We must work to elect those who can bring real protection and change.
This cannot be a partisan fight! We must bring both republicans and democrats to respect and support wolves in the wild. It will not be easy, but we can succeed.
We must demand that Fish, Wildlife and Parks allow wolf stamps to be sold to raise funds for non-game species like wolves, as they do with other special interest stamp sales (for example, duck stamps).
In Montana, we must use the example New Mexico is setting as they work to revamp their own Fish and wildlife agency by stopping slush fund appointments, demanding more conservationists on the commission, and to protect not remove wolves. If we work hard, we can do the same in Montana by 2027.
Nationally, wolves are losing to the mythology of the cowboy and the falsehoods promoted by sportsmen’s groups such as the NRA, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and the Foundation for Wildlife Management. Now more than ever, rural America has the strongest voice and anything related to protecting wildlife and wild land is spun as woke.
We must understand we are at the spearhead of years of work by those efforts such as Project 2025. They are a direct threat to national monuments, national parks, public lands, and agencies designed to protect wildlife and wild lands. This is part and parcel of the Sagebrush Rebellion which began during the Reagan administration and empowered radicals to push for the destruction of anything to do with sane and sustainable management of public lands.
We are living in a time where hatred is viewed as strength, but we have choices. We can cry and bury our heads in the sand, or we can fight like hell! We must go to Washington DC to lobby and continue to push both parties to be strong on wolf recovery. We must think long-term and show representatives what that looks like.
New national monuments must be created protecting apex predators and the wild lands needed for wildlife connectivity.
We must not pander to ranchers while also increasing their subsidies. It means spreading the word that grazing livestock on public lands is not a right, but a privilege. It means that when livestock is permitted to graze on public lands, predators should not be allowed to be killed and that non-lethal predator deterrents are required, such as range riders, fladry, and livestock guardian dogs. These need to be the requirements for grazing privileges!
We must create a vision of how western states will look when wolves are thriving on the landscape, continuing into perpetuity. Healthy riparian areas, healthy ungulate herds, the trophic cascade in action! People, not wild lands or wildlife, need to be restricted. We must educate all Americans about the importance of wolves, dispelling the myths and lies. We must show them the joy of wolf packs, the tenderness of a family unit, that wolves are successful in their hunts 15% of the time if they are lucky, and do not kill for sport or to waste prey.
We must also show the dark side if wolves are again allowed to teeter on the brink of extinction. Disease, destroyed riparian areas, the absence of birdsong and wolf howls. The list of destruction goes on and it will not be the first time…
Saving wolves is the fight of our lives! We must be ever more vigilant and vocal – we must demand that wolves be protected. We must confront decision makers and lawmakers, and work to change the one place that remains closed, their hearts.
Our love of wolves will be contagious, it can prevail. We must plan for the long game, be in it for the good fight, and put our hearts into every action we take to save wolves and allow them to thrive.
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