PRESS RELEASE: Wildlife Advocacy Organizations Disappointed in NRB Approval of the Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan

Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan and Hunting Rules Pass with Unfair Influence, Lack of Accountability and Politicized Science

For Immediate Release: October 25, 2023

MADISON — On October 25th, 2023 the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board (NRB) voted unanimously to approve a new Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan (WMP) and hunting rules. Great Lakes Wildlife Alliance (GLWA) along with many concerned citizens and conservation groups raised serious concerns about the fairness and transparency of the process, and the fact that the NRB ignored overwhelming public opposition to the plan.

“The NRB’s approval of this wolf management plan raises great concerns about democracy and transparency in Wisconsin.” said Paul Collins, Policy Advisor at Friends of the Wisconsin Wolf & Wildlife “Despite promises and boasts of transparency, the entire plan from development to approval was heavily influenced by recreational hunting and agricultural special interests behind closed doors. Thousands of pro-wolf voices were clearly minimized or ignored during this entire process.” 

The current NRB members are all pro-hunting and the new appointees, recently appointed by Governor Evers, have had no chance to thoroughly analyze the plan. Leading up to the vote, the NRB received over 3,500 public comments with the vast majority opposing both a population cap and the trophy hunting of wolves. However, the NRB completely ignored this public input once again and approved the plan anyway. 

The wolf management plan and hunting rules are also deeply flawed scientifically and ethically. The plan does not set a hard statewide population goal for wolves per se, but it also does not limit wolf quota numbers for hunting. Theoretically, this means that wolves could be hunted down to dangerously low levels in any given year. The plan also allows hunters to use bait and dogs to hunt wolves, along with electronics including calls and long range weapons, which are cruel and unsporting.

In addition to the above, here are some specific examples of the unfair influence, lack of accountability, transparency and democracy in the process of passing this plan and hunting rules:

• The Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and other special interests such as the Farm Bureau held private meetings after the public comment period to pressure NRB members to support the plan, even though they had already received overwhelming public opposition.
• The DNR held sudden public open houses on the plan that were poorly advertised, and held in remote locations with no zoom access, making it difficult for people to attend.
• The DNR refused to release key information about the wolf population, changes to the plan and the potential impacts of the plan.
• The NRB voted on the plan without giving any justification of why independent scientists were excluded, while failing to provide scientific evidence that hunting wolves reduces conflict. 

These are just a few examples of how the NRB failed to uphold its responsibility to the public trust in approving the WMP and hunting rules. It is clear that the NRB is more interested in serving special interests than prioritizing biodiversity, conservation or the democratic process. 

​​Melissa Smith, founder of Friends of the Wisconsin Wolf & Wildlife, says that the plan is better than the previous one but still ignores what most members of the public want from a scientifically sound management plan.

Smith said the plan doesn’t recognize that past threats to wolves still exist today and it defers too much to hunting lobbies. Wolf management should recognize the animals’ intrinsic value to their ecosystems, and account for whether wolves are fulfilling their ecological role on the landscape, Smith reasoned.

“It’s always about killing,” she said. “What if we just let the wolves thrive solely for their own existence without prioritizing human needs?”

Melissa Smith, Great Lakes Wildlife Alliance (608) 234-8860 msmith@wiwolvesandwildlife.org

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